– For the first time, I want to summarize our position, which was presented to the Minister of Foreign Affairs, and instructions were issued to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to implement it. There can be no negotiation without the participation of Belarus – announce Alexander Lukashenka.
The Belarusian leader explained that such a situation was not caused by the fact that his country was involved in the war like Russia. However, in his opinion, the participation of Minsk in the negotiations is necessary because the conflict is taking place directly outside his country.
– I am fully convinced and know that Russia understands this position. There’s nothing wrong with that, but It would be contrary to the intentions of the West – Lukashenka said and stressed that the country he leads will not “dance to the tune of the West.”
officially Belarusian forces do not participate in the Russian invasion of Ukraine that began on February 24. From its territory, part of the army of the Russian Federation struck its neighbor.
In recent weeks, there have been significant concerns about the involvement of Belarusian soldiers in the war. As the burden of the Russian invasion shifted from Kyiv’s direction east towards the Donbass region, these fears subsided.
“The Ukrainian authorities do not expect the Belarusian army to join the invasion of Ukraine now.” – Yunian News Agency reported on March 23, citing a statement by Oleksiy Aristovich, the adviser to the President of Ukraine.
Assistant Volodymyr Zelensky declared at that time that “the probability that Alexander Lukashenko will decide to take part in the war is” 15 to 20 percent.
