MINSK, 11 February (BelTA) - Belarus will never let anyone to push it around again, Belarus President Aleksandr Lukashenko said as he spoke at 6th Belarusian People's Congress on 11 February, BelTA has learned.
“Not long ago, Poland, after seeing how “poorly” we were coping with the pandemic, removed all restrictions, exams and testing for our doctors and nurses altogether, just asking to come and help the country save its people. Do you remember my response then? If everything is so good there and so bad in Belarus, why are you even bothering us, why are you asking something from us? We, the Belarusians, are always ready to help everyone. We, however, will never let anybody push us around. We have been brought to our knees for twenty centuries. We have come to the point where we are tired of kneeling and bowing. We will be building our own country,” the Belarusian leader stressed.
According to him, the so-called worldwide protest turned to be a reflection of the systemic political, economic, social and spiritual crisis that swept the planet. “I think it is time to take this topic to an international level before the planet is turned upside down. It is time to look at it as a global problem, which undermines the foundations of both the established world order and the order of individual states,” said Aleksandr Lukashenko.
Belarus knows how to bring positions closer and work out solutions to common problems, the president said. “A number of our global peace initiatives, such as the digital neighborhood for instance, serve the purpose. Practical steps have been taken and they are supported by many states. Just look at the five-year work of the trilateral contact group for the peaceful settlement of the situation in southeastern Ukraine. Yes, much has not been done, but people are not dying by thousands as before, and the war has been suspended. Yes, this is mostly not our merit, but there is our contribution to stopping this massacre. Unfortunately, Ukrainian politicians and the leadership of the country (for well-known reasons) do not remember this well, but I am convinced that the Ukrainian people do. Ukrainians have always been and will always remain our neighbors, our friends, our brothers,” he stressed.
In recent years, Minsk has hosted the summer session of the Parliamentary Assembly on Security and Cooperation in Europe and a landmark international forum on combating terrorism under the auspices of the UN and the OSCE. “At the same time, the analysis of the military and political situation and the state of international and regional security systems demonstrate a steady increase of risks and challenges, including those previously unknown. All the most negative forecasts are coming true in the third decade of the 21st century,” said the Belarusian leader.