Opinions & Interviews

Lukashenko describes Syria situation as clash of world’s major players

Photo Reuters

BORISOV, 10 December (BelTA) – The world’s major players have clashed in the battle for Syria. This is a lesson for Belarus, Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko said as he talked to employees of Pozhsnab company in Borisov, BelTA learned.

“What is happening there is just the beginning, I think. The power struggle will begin. The president has left, there is practically no government. Different ‘columns’ entered. Now there is a struggle for power. People hang, killed. We see these things going on. Someone is trying to look civilized: ‘look, we are not militants, we are wearing civilian clothes’. What is happening in Syria is a clash of the world’s major players. The Americans, the European Union, the Turks, the Russians and so on... The things began back in the day and this is how they ended. This is a lesson for us. We must determine our own fate. We must protect our country!” the head of state said.

“If we had failed in 2020, everyone would have been here by now. NATO, with the Americans behind it. They would encourage the Poles  who have their own interest here, namely western Belarus, which they once had. Do we need it? We don't need it. We have survived and will build our country. I want peace,” Aleksandr Lukashenko emphasized.

He noted that in the case of Belarus, if God forbid it happens, it would be very difficult or even almost impossible to fight, given the wooded and swampy terrain. “But in order to fight, we must have something in our hands. We have people's militia, territorial defense and the Armed Forces. Everything has been built up. But it will depend not only on me, but also on you. But I think we will do without it. We need peace to work. We're not going to send anyone anywhere. We need to defend our own,” the head of state note.

Returning to the topic of Syria, Aleksandr Lukashenko noted that Belarus did not interfere in the processes and supported the legitimate authorities together with Russia and Iran. However, the country was once turned into a testing ground for large states pursuing their interests.

The president said he knew well not only President Bashar al-Assad, but also his father, the previous Syrian leader, Hafez al-Assad. “That was the man of calibre. He died a long time ago, and now they are tearing down the monuments to him. Yet he created the state. Rich in resources, oil and so on,” Aleksandr Lukashenko said.

He also mentioned other leaders: Saddam Hussein in Iraq, Muammar Gaddafi in Libya, Fidel Castro in Cuba. “They [opponents in the West] poured buckets of dirt on them. They dubbed them dictators, barbarians, people killers and eaters. They called them lots of things. Because they could do nothing with them. I knew them well. They were tough people. They stood up for their people, for their state,” the president stated.

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