ST. PETERSBURG, April 26. /TASS/. Western steps against Russia and Belarus are pushing the situation towards a conflict but Moscow and Minsk are doing everything to ensure stability, First Deputy State Secretary of the Belarusian Security Council Pavel Muraveiko told TASS.

He pointed to "aggressive behavior" against Russia and Belarus. "This includes sanctions, border closures, the construction of a fence on the border and the deployment of combat units to border areas in addition to border guards," Muraveiko explained.

"All this together makes it clear that war is in the air. However, the leaders of Belarus and Russia are doing everything possible and impossible to ensure peace and security on western borders," the first deputy state secretary of the Belarusian Security Council stressed.

Among the factors of strategic deterrence, he mentioned Russia’s deployment of tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus and the active rearmament of the Belarusian army, "that is, Russian weapons supplies."

"It is also about the joint drills and training exercises that we hold with our Russian colleagues. All this together gives us confidence and [allows us] to say that it will be possible to ensure peace," Muraveiko concluded.