MINSK, 23 October (BelTA – TASS) - Political opponents of the Belarusian government are assembling a so-called liberation army of up to 15,000 people on the territory of the European Union, Sergei Terebov, First Deputy Chairman of the Belarusian State Security Committee (KGB), said at the third CIS conference on countering terrorism and extremism in Dushanbe.
“The opponent’s efforts to put together a force component for seizing power, including through the creation of a so-called Belarusian liberation army on European Union territory, poses significant risks to the country’s national security. According to the plans of the opponents of the current government, it is to be formed according to NATO standards and consist of three brigades with a total strength of 9,000 to 15,000 personnel,” he said.
According to him, the so-called army is intended to be based on illegal armed groups consisting of Belarusian citizens operating in Poland, Ukraine, and Lithuania. “Under the guise of sporting events, its members are undergoing combat training according to NATO standards under the guidance of former or active military personnel from NATO countries and Ukraine. The goal is to invade the Republic of Belarus. The training of these militants' focuses on the use of UAVs, including strike drones, urban combat and building assaults, sabotage and terrorist tactics, mine and explosive engineering basics, and the manufacture of improvised explosive devices. For training, they use combat drones, firearms, and a number of mock-ups of government facilities and key military sites. The training and instruction of these armed formations is being conducted on the territory of Ukraine, Poland, the Czech Republic, and the Baltic states,” Sergei Terebov explained.
He noted that the Ukrainian Security Service provides counterintelligence support for these activities and oversees the formations, while the Ukrainian Defense Ministry’s Main Intelligence Directorate oversees their operational deployment.
“The opponent’s efforts to put together a force component for seizing power, including through the creation of a so-called Belarusian liberation army on European Union territory, poses significant risks to the country’s national security. According to the plans of the opponents of the current government, it is to be formed according to NATO standards and consist of three brigades with a total strength of 9,000 to 15,000 personnel,” he said.
According to him, the so-called army is intended to be based on illegal armed groups consisting of Belarusian citizens operating in Poland, Ukraine, and Lithuania. “Under the guise of sporting events, its members are undergoing combat training according to NATO standards under the guidance of former or active military personnel from NATO countries and Ukraine. The goal is to invade the Republic of Belarus. The training of these militants' focuses on the use of UAVs, including strike drones, urban combat and building assaults, sabotage and terrorist tactics, mine and explosive engineering basics, and the manufacture of improvised explosive devices. For training, they use combat drones, firearms, and a number of mock-ups of government facilities and key military sites. The training and instruction of these armed formations is being conducted on the territory of Ukraine, Poland, the Czech Republic, and the Baltic states,” Sergei Terebov explained.
He noted that the Ukrainian Security Service provides counterintelligence support for these activities and oversees the formations, while the Ukrainian Defense Ministry’s Main Intelligence Directorate oversees their operational deployment.
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