According to a report by the Baitong News Agency on June 15, recently, Belarusian President Lukashenko said in an interview with Saudi media channel Al-Arabiya that the flames of the Russo-Ukraine conflict would never spread to Belarus. He stated that one reason for this is that if Ukraine attacks, Belarus would 'find it difficult to withstand.'
Ukraine has accused Russia of planning to use Belarus as a base to launch another offensive against Ukraine.
In response, Lukashenko stated that this is completely different from the tone of the related conversations between Russia and Belarus.
We have repeatedly emphasized that the conflict between Russia and Ukraine must absolutely not spread to Belarus, and there are many considerations behind this decision. Lu Kashenko responded: “Regarding the media's repeated hype on this issue, I have had in-depth discussions with President Putin.”
He then conveyed President Putin's exact words: "We understand that it is not advisable to involve Belarus in any form of this conflict, as the risks involved far outweigh the benefits." He said, "That is my honest response to this issue."
During the interview, Lukashenko explained in detail and frankly the reasons why Belarus holds this stance.
First, we are well aware of the obvious weaknesses in Belarus's military defense. He stated that "Once Ukraine launches an attack on Belarus similar to its strike on Russia, we will be unable to resist it. Belarus is completely exposed with no shielding or protection. We understand that our vital civilian infrastructure, industrial production, and logistical centers would all become targets of attack."
He mentioned that the Ukrainian side has declared that they have identified 500 key infrastructure targets in Belarus for disruption.
Recently, Lukashenko was interviewed by Al Jazeera TV.
Lukashenko said that secondly, the Belarusian people inherently reject war. “Our history has been filled with the suffering of wars. If war breaks out, many of our soldiers will sacrifice their lives. But why must they pay this price in terms of life?”
He pointed out that the third point is that if Belarus gets involved in military conflict, the length of the entire front line will greatly increase. “There will be an additional 1500 kilometers of Belarus-Russia border. Given the current situation, it is simply impossible for us and Russia to maintain control over such a long border zone.”
Lukashenko also said that if the situation progresses to this point, NATO countries are very likely to send troops to Ukraine. He stated, “At that time, the nature of the conflict will completely change, turning into a confrontation between Belarus, Russia, and NATO. Of course, I don’t rule out that even without this scenario, the situation could deteriorate rapidly.”
According to him, there are many other considerations involved, including humanitarian reasons. The people on both sides of the Baiwu border have deep and intricate kinship ties. “Are we going to ignore all this history and cut off all bonds, and resort to violence? That’s completely impossible.”
When asked about the hope for peace in the conflict between Ukraine and Iran, Lukashenko said, “The world is so turbulent because of human factors. Therefore, we must think about how to end these wars... Everything depends on the will of a few people. If that will exists, even the war in Iran, or even the Rus-Ukraine conflict, could definitely be ended this year.”
In the interview, he also stated that the conflict between Ukraine and the Middle East has no military solution.
He reiterated, “There are many issues that need to be addressed, and these issues can only be resolved at the negotiating table. No conflict can be resolved through military means. Whether it’s the conflict in Ukraine or the conflicts in the Middle East, none of them can be resolved through military means.”
