Lukashenko commented on situation on Belarus-Ukraine border
President of Belarus Aleksandr Lukashenko did not limit himself to a protocol address during today’s solemn meeting dedicated to Independence Day. The time is difficult now, and the situation in the information space is constantly escalating. Of course, the Head of State could not help but answer the most pressing questions that concern society and are actively discussed by journalists, experts and others. Aleksandr Lukashenko primarily commented on the situation on the Belarusian-Ukrainian border, particularly, on the concentration of troops of Ukraine’s Armed Forces on the border with Belarus.
“I noticed that the situation on the Belarusian-Ukrainian border is being actively discussed in all the media and not only there,” Aleksandr Lukashenko said. “What’s really going on? Frankly speaking, nothing special. Our neighbours have become very active in the last few days, maybe a couple of weeks. Our military, especially the border guards, immediately noticed this. In principle, we expected this. Many regard this as the fact that a large contingent of foreign representatives, primarily from our fraternal Russia, came to us on Independence Day, especially the huge air echelon, for which I’m grateful to the Russian Defence Minister. But in no case should we allow any escalation or aggravation. I want the Ukrainian leadership to hear this. The concentration of Armed Forces, even if it means nothing, is very dangerous during hostilities. We’ve analysed the situation. We’re well aware that we do not need any aggravation. We’ve always talked about it. Ukrainians understand that we will respond.”
The Head of State mentioned the statements of some Russian journalists that Aleksandr Lukashenko has ‘positive daltonism’ – like, he won’t draw any lines, but the answer will be terrible.
“You know, if someone crosses the border where I served, the response will really be harsh,” the President said.
According to him, recently our border guards and the military have been intercepting dozens of reconnaissance vehicles, and drones are already on our territory. They go deeper into the territory of our country by more than one metre. Several such UAVs were destroyed.
“I appreciate Ukrainians for gritting their teeth and accepting it normally,” Aleksandr Lukashenko noted. “I’m primarily concerned about another aspect: these drones are already transferring the most modern explosives to the territory of Belarus in hundredweight, not even in kilograms.”
The President noted that these explosives go further to Russia to commit terrorist attacks, “I want to say straightforwardly that we will defend ourselves from these drones wherever they are intended. We do not want any more repetition of the events similar to those at the Crocus City Hall, explosions and so on in our fraternal republic. So far, together with the Russian Federal Security Service (FSB) and the Russian Defence Ministry, we are able to contain this onslaught. However, I would ask Ukrainians not to play with fire. It’s very dangerous.”
The Head of State stressed that the Russian and Belarusian volunteer corps are involved in these activities, as well in the recent attack on the Belgorod Region, “This is not the so called Kalinovsky regiment. It turns out that there is also the Belarusian volunteer corps. However, there are less than a hundred people there. Surprisingly, as Ukrainians say, they fight against Russians better than Ukrainians themselves. I would also like to warn not to strain too much outside our country, it’s very dangerous. Our border guards have been transferred to the enhanced protection of the state border. Knowing 1941, we do not want to repeat these mistakes again. Special Operations Forces have been deployed. This means that not only the border guards, but also our military blocked the directions of possible enemy movement. You remember, a year ago we conducted such trainings. It turns out, not in vain. I think the Defence Minister will inform you about this in the next two days after the holidays. The Air Force and Air Defence are on high alert: both Belarusian and Russian. There is full interaction in this regard. The Polonez and Iskander missile systems have been put in position. You also know what kind of ammunition they have. No red lines!”
