Opinions & Interviews

Lukashenko: The more we want to live in a peaceful sovereign state, the stronger we must be

MINSK, 31 March (BelTA) – National defense capability is one of the conditions for sovereignty and independence, Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko said as he delivered his annual Address to the Belarusian people and the National Assembly on 31 March, BelTA has learned.

“Today, I think no one needs to be explained why the state needs a strong army equipped with the latest technology, why we need to develop our own military industry, and how important it is not to depend on anyone in this matter. The more we want to live in a peaceful sovereign state, the stronger we must be. It is an axiom,” Aleksandr Lukashenko said. “For those who have not yet understood this, I will repeat it again. Belarus is a peace-loving country. We are not planning to attack anyone. We do not want to be at war with anyone. We do not want it! We still have not buried the last soldier and civilian we lost during the Great Patriotic War. With all our heart we want that war to be the last one in the history of our land. The land soaked in blood and tears. We have had enough pain.”

Life, however, forces us to keep our powder dry, the president said. “We know the true face of so-called Western diplomacy. No one there has ever thought about peace, about the desire to find a compromise. We, Belarusians, learned this lesson even earlier, when the guarantees - economic, political and military ones - of our security from the West, according to Budapest memorandum, disappeared after the withdrawal of the last nuclear missile from our territory,” the head of state recalled those events.

“Let me reiterate: we will always proceed from the fact that promises of Western politicians, even supported by high signatures, are worthless. They cannot be trusted. And we are not the only ones here. I am talking about a global loss of trust between states. Those who have taken on the role of ruler of the world, the United States and its satellites, are not in a position to solve the crisis. Why? Because in the old-fashioned way, like the imperialists of past centuries, they see the only way out in war, and do not want to solve the problems of security and peace on an equal footing with the international community. Is a war capable of solving them, especially given the nuclear arsenals of the major centers of power? The answer is obvious. But apparently, not for everyone,” Aleksandr Lukashenko said.

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