Lukashenko: We do not need war, we are not going anywhere
OLENA ROSHCHINA – FRIDAY, 21 OCTOBER 2022, 14:00
The self-proclaimed President of Belarus, Alexander Lukashenko, denies that his country is carrying out covert mobilisation and preparing for war.
Source: Belarusian state-owned news outlet Belta
Quote from Lukashenko: "Pay no attention to this howling. We are not going anywhere today. We want no war today. We do not need it. We need to calm down. Everyone must do their job if we want there to be no war."
Details: At the same time, Lukashenko claimed that Belarus had adjusted its approach to equipping the troops so as to upgrade it based on the experience of the Russian war against Ukraine.
He noted that earlier he had had large-scale plans to equip the troops by 2030 for billions of dollars, but the experience of the war in Ukraine showed that the military prefers simpler but upgraded and more reliable military equipment.
"We have started upgrading tanks. We will accelerate and strengthen them", Lukashenko stated.
He also inspected Belarusian unmanned aerial vehicles and noted "promising developments". Lukashenko stressed that "it is not desirable that these devices [UAVs - ed.] be used in Ukraine".
Background:
- On 24 February, Russia launched a full-scale invasion of Ukraine, including using tanks and other heavy equipment from the territory of Belarus. Since retreating from Kyiv, Zhytomyr and Chernihiv oblasts, the Russian Federation has been using the territory of Belarus to launch missiles on the territory of Ukraine.
- On 21 September, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced a "partial mobilisation" in Russia.
- On 19 October, the Chief Intelligence Directorate of the Ministry of Defence of Ukraine reported that Alexander Lukashenko was worried about society’s reaction to the announcement of partial mobilisation.
- On 20 October, Belarusian media reported that there was an increase in Russian military personnel and equipment at the Zyabrovka military airfield near the border between Belarus and Ukraine, and that the Russians were bringing soldiers and ammunition from Russia’s far east to Belarus.
- The General Staff of the Armed Forces of Ukraine stated that the threat of a new attack from the territory of Belarus is growing, but that the site of the attack may change to the western part of the Belarusian-Ukrainian border.
- However, the American Institute for the Study of War (ISW) and UK defence intelligence still consider the risk of a new offensive from Belarus to be low.
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