MINSK, 28 September (BelTA) – While talking to reporters in the Kremlin on 26 September, Belarus President Aleksandr Lukashenko made a few comments in response to NATO countries, which had said they are ready to shoot down aircraft, BelTA has learned.
A Russian reporter asked the president what he thinks when he hears that NATO is already contemplating the possibility of shooting down Russian aircraft.
Aleksandr Lukashenko said: “You know, you can chitchat and launch any tricks into the public space. But when it is time to take action, you will see what they will shoot down and how. Would they shoot down Belarusian flying machines such as aircraft and helicopters above our territory? For instance, I often fly to [the national park] Belovezhskaya Pushcha. It is right at the border with Poland. Would they shoot down the president’s helicopter or some military escort helicopter? The answer will be instantaneous. It is not the war in Ukraine after all.”
The head of state also remarked that corresponding countries “express worries and scare us” by saying that an attack against a NATO country would mean that “they will defend themselves and may go nearly as far as attacking us”. “What will we do meanwhile? Chew our snot, begging your pardon? This is why it is just a bold statement [about the readiness to shoot down aircraft],” the president said.
“If they say they would shoot down, well, let them try and shoot them down. Or if they shoot down something Russian above Kaliningrad. Well, certainly, god forbid, but we would be forced to pull out all the stops and fight. Do we need that? We don’t,” Aleksandr Lukashenko noted. “I believe it is an ill-conceived and stupid statement. People shouldn’t act like this. Neighbors shouldn’t work like this.”
The president also wondered why “they would shoot us down” as a matter of principle and reminded how Belarus had recently acted like a good neighbor by warning Poland about incoming drones: “When either nine or 12 drones we had not been able to shoot down above Belarus’ territory were flying into Poland, we warned them. But what would have happened if we hadn’t? They were even surprised by our warning. Would they now shoot down our aircraft, helicopters or Russian ones in response to that?”
Aleksandr Lukashenko also reminded of another recent step by western neighbors: the closure of the border with Belarus: “What did it produce? It was even bigger trickery.”
However, the president hopes and believes that in the end the Polish nation would be able to influence the situation and the policy of its own country. “I once said that the Polish nation is not stupid people. And they will not allow their own government to act like bandits. This is why I feel not exactly hope… Well, even hope and belief in the Polish people. They will not allow their ambitions [of a number of politicians] to run amok,” the head of state said. “This is why I think they will calm down. They can talk. Today they need to make ambitious statements in order to pacify some part of the society in Poland.”
“But one should not act in this manner. It is necessary to calm down, cooperate, be friends, and help each other. Particularly for those, who live on one side of the border and the other one. Help engage in manufacturing, business, agriculture. People need to be friends. We aim for it,” Aleksandr Lukashenko concluded.
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