Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko said Ukraine was not the party
that wanted war with Russia, but it was the United States that pushed it to
war. Lukashenko has always been known as an ally of the Kremlin.
In an interview with the YouTube channel "Soloviev Live", part of which was
broadcast by Russian media on Sunday (6/2/2022), Lukashenko also predicted
that in about 15 years Kiev will join the Union State which will also
include Russia and Belarus. .
“This is just the crux of the war, which you and we are currently debating;
'Oh, Ukraine is going to war'. It was not Ukraine, it was America that
pushed them into the war," said Lukashenko, according to Russia Today.
Over the past few months, top officials and Western media have warned
repeatedly about Russia's alleged invasion of Ukraine, a charge Moscow has
consistently denied.
No actual evidence to support such a claim has emerged, with the report
citing anonymous sources and observations of Russian troop movements within
its own territory.
Ukraine, says Lukashenko, appears very reluctant to go to war. His comments
refer to recent statements by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.
Zelensky's latest statement accused Western politicians and media of
heightening tensions, portraying the situation in Ukraine as if it was
already at war with Russia.
“Although I didn't expect him to behave like that, [Zelensky] had already
started crying 'No, no, there would be no war, no war', and so on.
Now they are trying to push him back into his cage to make him say that
there will be war, that we will attack and so on,” Lukashenko said, branding
the Ukrainian president a "headless man".
He argues that the Ukrainian president does not seem to hate the entire
Soviet past.
"Zelensky is just a shapeless person, he doesn't have a backbone," he said.
Asked about Ukraine's future, Lukashenko said the country might eventually
become not only an ally, but also a member of the Union State, which
currently consists of Russia and Belarus.
Formed in 1999, the Russian-Belarusian State Union initially foresaw the
creation of a joint cabinet, parliament and judiciary, as well as other
institutions, effectively turning the two states into one.
Neither of these plans have materialized so far, but the two countries enjoy
a deep economic and political partnership, with plans for further
integration announced by Moscow and Minsk last year. Other countries,
Lukashenko said, could also join the organization.
"You know, Belarus has been there, I think there's a good lesson for
Kazakhstan," he said, referring to the violent turmoil the Central Asian
country experienced in early January, which prompted the Kazakh government
to request a brief peacekeeping mission with the Collective Security Treaty
Organization. (CSTO) led by Russia.
"If you say 15 years, I'm sure Ukraine will be there if we don't make a
mistake," said Lukashenko predicting the time.
