MINSK, 19 January (BelTA) – Neither Belarus nor Russia is the destabilizing actor in the region. The source of destabilization is the continuous and unjustified buildup of foreign forces along our border, Press Secretary of the Belarusian Ministry of Foreign Affairs Anatoly Glaz said commenting on the statement of the unnamed senior official of the U.S Department of State who said that Ukraine could be attacked through the territory of Belarus, and the changes to the Constitution of Belarus could lead to the deployment of Russian nuclear forces in Belarus, BelTA informs.
“Indeed, we have familiarized ourselves with this strange briefing. It recounted a bewildering set of fantasies and horror stories. It was done absolutely on purpose, even the anonymous nature of the briefing was a testimony to that. Our Russian colleagues called it disinformation, which was quite an accurate though diplomatic way of describing it,” Anatoly Glaz said.
“In recent weeks the USA has been systematically spreading disinformation in one way or another. It is absolutely clear that it is being done to escalate the situation, to create and exacerbate tensions. This has already become commonplace. The United States needs this to justify a number of its illegal actions and to make up for all its ignominious failures of recent times. Yet, it is hard to understand why they think that others are stupid enough to fall for these overused tricks,” he said.
This time Belarus was accused of destabilizing the situation in the region and being a springboard for an ‘attack' on Ukraine from the north. “This hoax is doing its rounds year to year. This is absolutely absurd. We have made it clear many times that no threat will ever come from our territory, this commitment has even been included in the Constitution draft. We cannot be more specific about it. Therefore, we suggest they should stop fretting and clarify all matters within the framework of a dialogue,” the official representative of the foreign ministry emphasized.
"We explained the essence of the upcoming military exercise and we did it publicly. Just yesterday, the Defense Ministry held a briefing for military diplomats accredited in Belarus," he said. “We are convinced that the source of destabilization in the region is not Belarus or Russia but the continuous and unjustified buildup of a foreign military presence along our borders."
This buildup effort involves those who are unable to comply even with the commitments they have signed up to. "Let me quote the Budapest Memorandum: ‘The United Kingdom and the United States reaffirm their commitment to the Republic of Belarus ... to refrain from economic coercion designed to subordinate to their own interests the exercise by the Republic of Belarus of the rights inherent in its sovereignty and thus to secure advantages of any kind." So maybe the United States should start with this?" Anatoly Glaz asked.
"Our American colleagues get themselves concerned over potential deployment of armed forces and nuclear weapons in our country. If my memory does not fail me it is the United States and the EU that have recently zealously defended the sacred right of each state to choose an alliance or union to join. Or is it different? We are not obliged to account for our actions to the United States and we are not going to. We stand ready to discuss any concern in a civilized way. Fortunately, there is a diplomatic presence in both countries,” Anatoly Glaz noted.
