Russian President Vladimir Putin’s first visit to Belarus since 2019 was seen by the Ukrainian side as an attempt to involve Belarusians more in the war, including an eventual entry of his troops into Ukraine. On the side of the opposition to President Alexander Lukashenko, it was seen as another step towards incorporating Belarus into the Russian Federation.
None of the authorized journalists asked specific questions about the war. On the other topic, Putin stressed that Moscow has no interest in “absorbing” anyone, but that the “enemies” want to block integration. In the end, both leaders talked about strengthening relations in all areas and this does not put an end to the concerns of both Kiev and Belarusian opponents.
Belarus was the starting point for Russian troops in the first attack on Ukraine, as this made it possible to shorten the road to Kiev, in addition to being the constant phase of joint military exercises between the two countries. However, Lukashenko has defended the “sovereignty and independence” of Belarus and has refused to involve his forces directly in the conflict. Yet Minsk has been the target of European sanctions over its support for Russia.
But Ukrainians, who believe Moscow is preparing a new offensive on Kiev early next year, think that could change. However, the Kremlin denied that this was the reason for Putin’s trip. Spokesman Dmitry Peskov told Russian agencies that the Belarus is Russia’s “number one ally”, but allegations that Moscow wanted to pressure Minsk to take part in the so-called “special military operation” in Ukraine were “stupid and baseless fabrications”.
The Belarusian army has about 65,000 people, of which 50,000 are soldiers and officers, and analysts believe it is not strong enough to make a difference on the ground in Ukraine. Joining the conflict would also be extremely unpopular for the Lukashenko regime, which survived a post-presidential protest movement in 2020. The elections, in which he won for the sixth time in a row, were not considered legitimate by the international community.
However, the fact that Kiev remains suspended as to what to expect from Minsk forces it to maintain an important detachment near the border between the two countries, preventing these troops from being deployed elsewhere where they could face the Russians. Meet. This Monday, the two countries agreed to continue joint training, namely that the Russians will continue to train Belarusian crews to fly aircraft capable of carrying nuclear weapons.
Guterres pessimistic
United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres was pessimistic about a quick resolution of the war. “I am not optimistic about the possibility of effective peace talks in the foreseeable future,” he said at a news conference in New York, saying he “strongly” hoped that peace could be achieved within the next year.
In the early hours of Monday, Kiev was again targeted by Russian (Iranian) suicide drones. According to military authorities, 23 were detected in the three hours the alarm went off, of which 18 were shot down by the capital’s anti-aircraft system. Once again, electrical infrastructures were affected🇧🇷 The attacks were repeated in other regions of the country, necessitating a power cut.
Moscow, for its part, said it had shot down four US-made missiles in the Belgorod region, close to the border with Ukraine – the first such accusation had been made in 10 months of conflict.
Source: DN
