MOSCOW, March 7. /TASS/. Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko’s sharp words addressed to Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky serve as a warning that any further sabotage attacks on Belarusian soil could lead to war between the neighboring countries, Vladimir Zharikhin, deputy director of the Institute of CIS Countries, told TASS on Tuesday.
Lukashenko said earlier that the recent attempted attack on a Russian A-50 early warning and control (AWACS) aircraft at the Machulishchy airfield near Minsk could not have occurred without Zelensky having signed off on it.
"It's rhetoric, and it's a warning. And, judging by the harshness of the tone, the warning is quite serious. If such actions are repeated, Lukashenko would consider that as a casus belli (Latin for grounds to declare war - TASS), and he would have every reason to do so," the analyst said. "If these attacks continue, Lukashenko will reasonably believe that the Ukrainian state is at war with Belarus, as it permits such actions, and doesn’t hide that they are carried out on orders from the country's leadership."
Zharikhin said that Lukashenko’s criticism of the Ukrainian president was a logical outcome of Kiev's actions.
"Lukashenko didn’t start this. If the territory of his country comes under attack by a terrorist group that tries to carry out a sabotage attack, then, of course, the reaction should be quite harsh," the analyst said. "He has a peaceful country. It’s not at war with Ukraine. Suddenly, it gets attacked, quite clearly on the orders of the head of that neighboring country. He said everything that he thinks about Zelensky."
The analyst added that there is no point in looking for any kind of message to Moscow in Lukashenko’s statements, as relations between Russia and Belarus are so close that there is no need to express views on such issues in a roundabout, indirect way.
Earlier, reports had circulated that the military airfield at Machulishchy had been attacked, with the Russian Aerospace Force’s A-50 aircraft allegedly suffering significant damage. Belarus called these reports false, however. Later, Belarusian television aired footage where the A-50 aircraft was shown in good condition while moving on the runway.