MOGILEV, 2 November (BelTA) – The measures taken in Belarus are a response to the actions of the country's opponents, Defense Minister Viktor Khrenin said as he met with labor collectives to brief them on ongoing military and political developments in Belarus and abroad, BelTA has learned.
“Belarus has unleashed a set of strategic deterrence measures of both forceful and non-forceful nature. Troops have been put on combat alert, all forms of reconnaissance are conducted, intelligence information is exchanged with our allies, our state borders are reinforced, measures are taken to prevent military provocations in the border area. These measures are a response to the actions of our opponents. We are not going to attack anyone. The actions of the joint military task force of Belarus and Russia, the Union State are purely defensive, and all these measures seek to provide an adequate response to what is happening near our borders. The strategic deterrence measures undertaken by the armed forces demonstrate readiness to defend our country and inflict damage on aggressors,” the defense minister said.
According to him, the situation around Belarus will remain unfavorable. “Western centers of power, primarily the United States and NATO, might still want to use force to achieve their goals. Military threats for Belarus will increase proportionally to the West's mounting pressure on the Russian Federation that seeks to defeat and erase it from the political map of the world. There is a possibility that an internal conflict will be instigated in Belarus that will be followed by external interference by the West from the territories of Poland, Lithuania, Latvia and Ukraine,” he stressed.
In such conditions, the most important task for the military and political leadership is to implement an effective defense policy to counter modern threats and challenges. Viktor Khrenin emphasized that Belarus' position remains unchanged. The country calls for sitting down at the negotiating table and coming to an agreement instead of brandishing weapons. “As our head of state reiterated more than once, Minsk is ready to provide a platform for such processes,” he added.
