Defense minister says Western countries want to destroy Slavic brotherhood

May 20, BPN. “The West is trying to drown the Slavic brotherhood in blood and keep its dominance by all means,” Belarusian Defense Minister Viktar Chrenin has told the conscripts at an oath-taking event in Barysaŭ, Minsk region.

Western countries are boosting their military infrastructure while NATO troops move closer to the borders of the Union State of Russia and Belarus, he said.

In this situation, the Belarusian army is “forced to react, monitor all activities and take appropriate decisions,” including by stepping up border protection, the defense ministry’s press office quoted the official as saying.

Chrenin openly supported Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Ukrainian Defense Minister Oleksii Reznikov told journalists that Chrenin called him two days after the invasion to convey a message from Russia demanding Ukraine’s surrender. Reznikov responded that he was ready to accept the capitulation from the Russian side.