Lukashenko: We will not allow repetition of 1941tragedy

Belarus does not need an escalation of the situation in the region, and all our actions are aimed at preventing Belarus from being drawn into a military conflict. The President announced this today.

Alexander Lukashenko, President of Belarus:

Everything that is happening today on the southern and western borderlands of the country does not need to be reminded of. I won’t, you know that well. You know as well as I do. In fact, we find ourselves in the same situation as our ancestors eight decades ago; we also need to survive and not allow enemies to drag Belarus into a military conflict. And we do everything necessary for this. We will not allow a repetition of the tragedy of 1941. We will continue to develop, strengthen and improve our Armed Forces. Belarusians do not want war, but the response to any provocation against us must be decisive and tough. Each of you must learn this. This is our principled position. There is someone and something to respond to any aggressor.

There are many ways to fight in the modern world: mental, ideological, cyber and proxy wars - Belarus needs to take reality into account, strengthen its combat capabilities, and teach modern methods of warfare. The Ukrainian conflict teaches us a lot, the head of state noted. The President commented on the recent situation with the withdrawal of troops on our southern borders and the elimination of tension on the border with Ukraine. Shooting is a last resort, Alexander Lukashenko said, one must always learn to negotiate.

The President of Belarus cited a very recent example when the situation on the Belarusian-Ukrainian border became more complicated. “I would not say that it has escalated, but it has gone beyond what it was. We noticed that the Ukrainians began to concentrate certain troops, including removing the most trained combat troops from the front, to the border areas,” the head of state recalled. We didn’t hide it from people. We presented this information in a calm rhythm and manner. But people were alarmed, people are always more sensitive, and they see a little more than we do.”

"We had to promise people and respond. Everyone who took part in this response deserves the highest praise. I am very grateful to you for that. But the experience is that shooting is an extreme method. We must always learn to negotiate. In this conflict, the military did not involve diplomats. But we achieved success,” the Belarusian leader emphasized.

The head of state noted that the Ukrainian side does not need a war in this direction. “We don’t need it any more. They withdrew the Armed Forces, we withdrew our troops,” said Alexander Lukashenko.

The president once again emphasized that Belarus does not need war, but the country is ready to defend its borders if necessary: ​​“Remember and know that we do not want to fight. We will fight only when someone else’s boot sets foot on our land. We will do everything diplomatically in order to regulate our relations, primarily with our neighbors."

“This is exactly how we propose to regulate our relations with both Poland and Lithuania. But so far we do not see reciprocity. Therefore, we have to keep our ears open and our powder dry in the northwestern and western directions,” added the Belarusian leader.