٠٠:٠٦:١٧Mandatory credit: Pul Pervogo
Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko said that Minsk considered the state border a 'red line', warning Ukraine and NATO against crossing it, speaking during an interview with the Rossiya TV channel published on Thursday.
"We don't want escalation, and we don't want this war against all of NATO. We don't want that. But if they do it and go for it, well... We will have no other way out. There will be no red lines, Zhenya, you can emphasise in your programme that there will be no red lines. The state border is our red line. As soon as you step on it, I say as a border guard, the answer will be instantaneous," he said.
Lukashenko also claimed that Belarus was 'not going to use any weapons' unless any country stepped on Belarusian territory, but noted that Minsk would respond 'instantly and adequately' to the violation of the state border.
"We are not going to use any weapons unless you step on our state border. It is the border of our Union State [of Russia and Belarus]. According to our treaty, Russia is bringing in its troops. It has been determined which armies in Belarus will take the first blow, and then Russia will back us up in reserve," he said. "We will respond instantly and adequately," Lukashenko continued.
In July 2023, Russia completed the construction of a storage facility for tactical nuclear weapons on the territory of Belarus. Russian President Vladimir Putin emphasised that it was a question of the weapon’s deployment, not its transfer, thus complying with the terms of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT).
In turn, Lukashenko said that the deployment of nuclear weapons on the territory of the country was an adequate response to the "accelerated militarization of Eastern Europe and the growth of military activity of the United States and NATO".
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.
'State border is our red line' - Lukashenko on possibility of using nuclear weapons
Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko said that Minsk considered the state border a 'red line', warning Ukraine and NATO against crossing it, speaking during an interview with the Rossiya TV channel published on Thursday.
"We don't want escalation, and we don't want this war against all of NATO. We don't want that. But if they do it and go for it, well... We will have no other way out. There will be no red lines, Zhenya, you can emphasise in your programme that there will be no red lines. The state border is our red line. As soon as you step on it, I say as a border guard, the answer will be instantaneous," he said.
Lukashenko also claimed that Belarus was 'not going to use any weapons' unless any country stepped on Belarusian territory, but noted that Minsk would respond 'instantly and adequately' to the violation of the state border.
"We are not going to use any weapons unless you step on our state border. It is the border of our Union State [of Russia and Belarus]. According to our treaty, Russia is bringing in its troops. It has been determined which armies in Belarus will take the first blow, and then Russia will back us up in reserve," he said. "We will respond instantly and adequately," Lukashenko continued.
In July 2023, Russia completed the construction of a storage facility for tactical nuclear weapons on the territory of Belarus. Russian President Vladimir Putin emphasised that it was a question of the weapon’s deployment, not its transfer, thus complying with the terms of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT).
In turn, Lukashenko said that the deployment of nuclear weapons on the territory of the country was an adequate response to the "accelerated militarization of Eastern Europe and the growth of military activity of the United States and NATO".
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 said that Minsk considered the state border a 'red line', warning Ukraine and NATO against crossing it, speaking during an interview with the Rossiya TV channel published on Thursday.
"We don't want escalation, and we don't want this war against all of NATO. We don't want that. But if they do it and go for it, well... We will have no other way out. There will be no red lines, Zhenya, you can emphasise in your programme that there will be no red lines. The state border is our red line. As soon as you step on it, I say as a border guard, the answer will be instantaneous," he said.
Lukashenko also claimed that Belarus was 'not going to use any weapons' unless any country stepped on Belarusian territory, but noted that Minsk would respond 'instantly and adequately' to the violation of the state border.
"We are not going to use any weapons unless you step on our state border. It is the border of our Union State [of Russia and Belarus]. According to our treaty, Russia is bringing in its troops. It has been determined which armies in Belarus will take the first blow, and then Russia will back us up in reserve," he said. "We will respond instantly and adequately," Lukashenko continued.
In July 2023, Russia completed the construction of a storage facility for tactical nuclear weapons on the territory of Belarus. Russian President Vladimir Putin emphasised that it was a question of the weapon’s deployment, not its transfer, thus complying with the terms of the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons (NPT).
In turn, Lukashenko said that the deployment of nuclear weapons on the territory of the country was an adequate response to the "accelerated militarization of Eastern Europe and the growth of military activity of the United States and NATO".
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.