{"id":11373,"date":"2022-03-11T12:42:21","date_gmt":"2022-03-11T09:42:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/api.pozirk.online\/longreads\/lukasenka-plays-up-nato-threat-promises-to-watch-russias-back\/"},"modified":"2026-02-24T20:29:13","modified_gmt":"2026-02-24T20:29:13","slug":"lukasenka-plays-up-nato-threat-promises-to-watch-russias-back","status":"publish","type":"longreads","link":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/longreads\/11373\/","title":{"rendered":"Luka\u0161enka plays up NATO threat, promises to watch Russia\u2019s back"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>\n <span>By Aliaksandr Klasko\u016dski, BPN<\/span>\n<\/p>\n<p>\n <b>Aliaksandr Luka\u0161enka says that he keeps Belarus\u2019 armed forces on high alert to repel a possible attack on Russian troops in Ukraine from the west. He fears of an attack by some mercenaries from the Ukrainian territory.<\/b>\n<\/p>\n<p>\n\t \u201cWe have always been wary of the presence of mercenaries in the neighboring states, especially in Ukraine,\u201d he told the military brass on March 10. He said that several intelligence sources spotted movements of mercenaries in Ukraine along the Belarusian-Ukrainian border towards Chernobyl.\n<\/p>\n<h2> <span>Luka\u0161enka seems unwilling to send troops to Ukraine<\/span> <\/h2>\n<p>\n\t Belarus deployed five battalion tactical groups to beef up security at the Belarusian-Ukrainian border. The troops might have been moved there at Russia\u2019s request to reinforce its offensive. But Luka\u0161enka seems reluctant to send Belarusian troops to fight in Ukraine alongside with Russians.\n<\/p>\n<p>\n\t He had told generals on February 24 that Belarusian forces should monitor closely the country\u2019s borders with Poland and Lithuania. He added that the Polish leadership was looking to take advantage of the Russian special operation: \u201cThey need this little war very much to reverse the unpopularity of the PiS [Law and Justice, the ruling party] and crazy [Polish President Andrzej] Duda,\u201d he said.\n<\/p>\n<h2> <span>Chrenin told to watch ally\u2019s back<\/span> <\/h2>\n<p>\n\t The theory that NATO can invade Belarus to attack Russian forces from the back seems fanciful. But Luka\u0161enka often cites it to defend movements of Belarusian troops inside Belarus and drive home the idea that his forces are needed in Belarus, not in Ukraine as reinforcements for the Russians.\n<\/p>\n<p>\n\t Luka\u0161enka on March 10 expressed concern about alleged military build-up at Belarus\u2019 western border. He said the Belarusian troops should do their best to prevent NATO from cutting the Russian army\u2019s supply routes and attacking Russian forces from the back. &nbsp;\n<\/p>\n<p>\n\t It is unclear whether the Kremlin takes his excuses seriously. But so far, he has managed to keep Belarusian forces on the Belarusian territory.\n<\/p>\n<p>\n\t After the March 10 meeting with Luka\u0161enka, Viktar Chrenin, Belarus\u2019 defense minister, said that he was given orders to \u201ccover our main ally\u2019s back\u201d during the special operation.\n<\/p>\n<h2> <span>Will Putin insist on Belarus\u2019 involvement?<\/span> <\/h2>\n<p>\n\t Luka\u0161enka flew to Moscow on March 11 to meet with Vladimir Putin. Some observers are wondering whether the latter will insist on Belarusian troops\u2019 involvement in Russia\u2019s military campaign in Ukraine.\n<\/p>\n<p>\n\t Luka\u0161enka critically needs Moscow\u2019s support in the face of new Western sanctions. He may ask Putin for a loan and assistance with transits of potash fertilizers and other cargoes, and ask Russia to buy more Belarusian goods.\n<\/p>\n<p>\n\t Economists note that Western sanctions have taken a heavy toll on Moscow, and it cannot offer Minsk as much aid as it needs. On the other hand, Putin may demand that Minsk honor its commitments as Russia\u2019s military ally.\n<\/p>\n<p>Even if Luka\u0161enka avoids<br \/>\nsending troops to Ukraine, the Belarusian regime has already been branded a<br \/>\nco-aggressor. The Belarusian ruler will not be able to shield his country from<br \/>\ndevastating Western sanctions.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>By Aliaksandr Klasko\u016dski, BPN Aliaksandr Luka\u0161enka says that he keeps Belarus\u2019 armed forces on high alert to repel a possible attack on Russian troops in Ukraine from the west. He fears of an attack by some mercenaries from the Ukrainian territory. \u201cWe have always been wary of the presence of mercenaries in the neighboring states, [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":75,"featured_media":0,"template":"","rubric":[22],"class_list":["post-11373","longreads","type-longreads","status-publish","hentry","rubric-theviewer"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v25.5 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Luka\u0161enka plays up NATO threat, promises to watch Russia\u2019s back | Pozirk<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"By Aliaksandr Klasko\u016dski, BPN Aliaksandr Luka\u0161enka says that he keeps Belarus\u2019 armed forces on high alert to repel a possible attack on Russian troops in\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" 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