NATO building up forces, means along members' borders with Russia, Belarus: Belarusian president

By Burc Eruygur

ISTANBUL (AA) - Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko on Thursday said NATO is building up its forces and means along the member countries' borders with Moscow and Minsk.

“NATO forces and assets are being built up near the borders of Belarus and the Russian Federation, they are especially concerned about the Kaliningrad region,” Lukashenko said alongside his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin on Thursday at a meeting of the Supreme State Council of the Union State of Russia and Belarus in Moscow.

Lukashenko claimed that NATO’s military build-up along the border came after the West’s “failed attempt” of an economic blockade on Russia and Belarus.

“To replace the failed attempts at an economic blockade, today they (the West) wanted to take us in a rush, although if they had thought about it, they would not have done it, because the economy is self-sufficient,” he further said.

Lukashenko also said a flow of weapons was coming to Belarus from Ukraine -- first to Russia and then to Belarus through Russia's city of Bryansk and other regions -- as his country’s border with Ukraine is “tightly closed.”

He also said the Belarusian authorities, together with the Federal Security Service, detained a “terrorist” that entered his country through Russia.

“They won't leave us alone. But it must be said that there are caches of weapons and explosives in Belarus and Russia. They come in and take it. ... That's how this situation happened in St. Petersburg," he further claimed.

In this regard, he further said that an effective system of defense and security has been created by the Union State -- an integration process between Russia and Belarus -- within which “the regional group of forces and the joint regional air defense system are successfully operating.”

He also said these steps to strengthen border security made it possible to increase the protection of the Union State from international terrorism, the uncontrolled flow of migrants, smuggling, ammunition, and drug trafficking.

For his part, Putin said Russia and Belarus intend to expand cooperation in the defense and military-technical spheres.

"Russia and Belarus are building up -- and will continue to do so, as noted today -- their cooperation in the field of defense and security. They are expanding cooperation in the military-technical sphere.

"And this, of course, meets the fundamental interests of our countries and peoples. It is really important given the difficult international situation," Putin said.

Putin also said he discussed the extension of some previous agreements with his Belarusian counterpart, noting: “I ask our Security Council to work out everything that was set today as a priority task in this area by the President of Belarus."

Moscow and Minsk are jointly implementing “comprehensive measures” to minimize the damage from foreign sanctions, as well as strengthening cooperation with countries that want to work with them, he added.​​​​​​​