03:07Mandatory credit: Pul Pervogo
Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko claimed Kiev’s offensive into Russia’s Kursk region is an attempt to push Moscow into 'asymmetric actions' which could include the deployment of 'tactical nuclear weapons' while speaking in an interview with the Russian Rossiya TV channel published on Sunday.
"I know for sure that Ukraine would be very happy if Russia or we used tactical nuclear weapons. They would be delighted. Then we would probably have hardly any allies left. There would be no countries sympathising with us left at all. Because they are not immersed in what is happening," Lukashenko said.
The Belarusian president added that the possibility of NATO troops entering Ukraine in a direct confrontation with Russia remains a real threat.
"We have to realise it, President Putin and I see it, that NATO troops can already openly engage in this, without even hiding it, they will go in formations. Now they are supplying weapons, mercenaries, former military personnel to fly F-16s and so on. This is already in place," Lukashenko continued.
Ukrainian forces entered Kursk region on August 6 in an offensive described by Russian President Vladimir Putin as a 'large-scale provocation'.
Earlier this week, the Kursk region's acting government reported that 12 people had been killed and 121 wounded, including ten children. Kursk's acting governor also claimed that "28 settlements are under the enemy's control", with Ukrainian forces advancing to 12 kilometres in depth and 40 kilometres across.
A counter-terrorist operation regime was introduced in the Kursk, Belgorod and Bryansk regions on August 9, while more than 120,000 people have been evacuated from the Kursk border districts.
On Tuesday, August 13, AFU Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrsky claimed that Ukrainian forces controlled '74 settlements', having previously stated that his forces had '1,000 square kilometres' of Russian territory. President Volodymyr Zelensky described the attack as 'purely [a] security issue for Ukraine'.
The US State Department has said that its policy of using US weapons to "target imminent threats just across the border" had not changed and that the incursion had not violated US policy.
Moscow launched a military offensive in Ukraine in late February 2022 after recognising the independence of the Donetsk and Lugansk People's Republics (DPR and LPR), claiming that Kiev had failed to guarantee their special status under the 2014 Minsk Agreements, and urging Ukraine to declare itself officially neutral and give assurances that it would never join NATO.
Kiev denounced the Russian action as an invasion. Zelensky imposed martial law throughout the country, announcing a general mobilisation, while the EU and the US imposed several rounds of sanctions on Moscow.
'Ukraine would be very happy if Russia or we used tactical nuclear weapons' - Lukashenko
Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko claimed Kiev’s offensive into Russia’s Kursk region is an attempt to push Moscow into 'asymmetric actions' which could include the deployment of 'tactical nuclear weapons' while speaking in an interview with the Russian Rossiya TV channel published on Sunday.
"I know for sure that Ukraine would be very happy if Russia or we used tactical nuclear weapons. They would be delighted. Then we would probably have hardly any allies left. There would be no countries sympathising with us left at all. Because they are not immersed in what is happening," Lukashenko said.
The Belarusian president added that the possibility of NATO troops entering Ukraine in a direct confrontation with Russia remains a real threat.
"We have to realise it, President Putin and I see it, that NATO troops can already openly engage in this, without even hiding it, they will go in formations. Now they are supplying weapons, mercenaries, former military personnel to fly F-16s and so on. This is already in place," Lukashenko continued.
Ukrainian forces entered Kursk region on August 6 in an offensive described by Russian President Vladimir Putin as a 'large-scale provocation'.
Earlier this week, the Kursk region's acting government reported that 12 people had been killed and 121 wounded, including ten children. Kursk's acting governor also claimed that "28 settlements are under the enemy's control", with Ukrainian forces advancing to 12 kilometres in depth and 40 kilometres across.
A counter-terrorist operation regime was introduced in the Kursk, Belgorod and Bryansk regions on August 9, while more than 120,000 people have been evacuated from the Kursk border districts.
On Tuesday, August 13, AFU Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrsky claimed that Ukrainian forces controlled '74 settlements', having previously stated that his forces had '1,000 square kilometres' of Russian territory. President Volodymyr Zelensky described the attack as 'purely [a] security issue for Ukraine'.
The US State Department has said that its policy of using US weapons to "target imminent threats just across the border" had not changed and that the incursion had not violated US policy.
Moscow launched a military offensive in Ukraine in late February 2022 after recognising the independence of the Donetsk and Lugansk People's Republics (DPR and LPR), claiming that Kiev had failed to guarantee their special status under the 2014 Minsk Agreements, and urging Ukraine to declare itself officially neutral and give assurances that it would never join NATO.
Kiev denounced the Russian action as an invasion. Zelensky imposed martial law throughout the country, announcing a general mobilisation, while the EU and the US imposed several rounds of sanctions on Moscow.
Mandatory credit: Pul Pervogo
Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko claimed Kiev’s offensive into Russia’s Kursk region is an attempt to push Moscow into 'asymmetric actions' which could include the deployment of 'tactical nuclear weapons' while speaking in an interview with the Russian Rossiya TV channel published on Sunday.
"I know for sure that Ukraine would be very happy if Russia or we used tactical nuclear weapons. They would be delighted. Then we would probably have hardly any allies left. There would be no countries sympathising with us left at all. Because they are not immersed in what is happening," Lukashenko said.
The Belarusian president added that the possibility of NATO troops entering Ukraine in a direct confrontation with Russia remains a real threat.
"We have to realise it, President Putin and I see it, that NATO troops can already openly engage in this, without even hiding it, they will go in formations. Now they are supplying weapons, mercenaries, former military personnel to fly F-16s and so on. This is already in place," Lukashenko continued.
Ukrainian forces entered Kursk region on August 6 in an offensive described by Russian President Vladimir Putin as a 'large-scale provocation'.
Earlier this week, the Kursk region's acting government reported that 12 people had been killed and 121 wounded, including ten children. Kursk's acting governor also claimed that "28 settlements are under the enemy's control", with Ukrainian forces advancing to 12 kilometres in depth and 40 kilometres across.
A counter-terrorist operation regime was introduced in the Kursk, Belgorod and Bryansk regions on August 9, while more than 120,000 people have been evacuated from the Kursk border districts.
On Tuesday, August 13, AFU Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrsky claimed that Ukrainian forces controlled '74 settlements', having previously stated that his forces had '1,000 square kilometres' of Russian territory. President Volodymyr Zelensky described the attack as 'purely [a] security issue for Ukraine'.
The US State Department has said that its policy of using US weapons to "target imminent threats just across the border" had not changed and that the incursion had not violated US policy.
Moscow launched a military offensive in Ukraine in late February 2022 after recognising the independence of the Donetsk and Lugansk People's Republics (DPR and LPR), claiming that Kiev had failed to guarantee their special status under the 2014 Minsk Agreements, and urging Ukraine to declare itself officially neutral and give assurances that it would never join NATO.
Kiev denounced the Russian action as an invasion. Zelensky imposed martial law throughout the country, announcing a general mobilisation, while the EU and the US imposed several rounds of sanctions on Moscow.