MINSK, September 16. /TASS/. Analysis of the events unfolding in Belarus showed that the protest rallies which engulfed the country had been plotted by the Western countries for over ten years, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko stated on Wednesday during a meeting with the country's political core, the BelTA news agency reported.
"A step-by-step analysis of the events in the country reveals true schemes and tactics of the external aggressors of Belarus, not even opponents." The head of state said that over the past ten years they had been meticulously preparing for the present critical moment.
"In order to unmask them all at once, let us name the players. At the level of global centers this is above all the United States of America, more precisely - their network of foundations to support the so-called democracy. In the European continent the American satellites were the most active, including Poland, Lithuania, Czech Republic, and, unfortunately, our Ukraine," the agency quoted the president.
Each of these countries played its part, he stressed. "The Czech Republic for a long time [served] as a resource hub, Poland at first [served] as an incubator of media channels (Belsat, NEXTA, and others) and then - as a platform for alternative agencies in exile. Lithuania, peeved by the BelNPP (Belarusian nuclear power plant - TASS) issue [served] as a battering ram of Belarusian-European relations. Ukraine, despite our constant support for it (for example, in the issues of territorial integrity and in many others), despite the spirit of our relationship, became the outpost of political provocations," Lukashenko stated.
"Thus, we clearly see the subjects of this process, their middlemen and abettors," he continued. "The tactics of the masterminds was built in accordance with the classic American textbook of color revolutions by well-known Gene Sharp. Now we can look back and analyze in detail all stages of the scenario to destroy our country which we, fortunately, staved off and will never let happen," he added.
Plans to embroil Belarus in crisis
Alexander Lukashenko claimed that coordinators of the protest campaign seek to drag the country into a protracted political and economic crisis.
"Trying to embroil the country in a lengthy political and economic crisis, the protest coordinators hand out instructions for economic resistance as they put it, or tax evasion, non-payment of utility bills, withdrawals from trade unions and so on," the BelTA news agency quoted Lukashenko as saying.
"The 2020 Belarusian scenario consists of an alloy of the most effective color [revolutions'] techniques of destabilization which have been tested in a variety of countries. It is obvious that the stake is on the scale and duration of the protests, on wearing the strength down and on draining up resources. We know those in charge pursuing some goals in Belarus, so we do not relax and are ready to respond to any challenge," the Belarusian president said.