MINSK, July 16./TASS/. The tense situation along the border between Belarus and Ukraine was resolved exclusively by the military, no bullets or diplomats necessary, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko said.
"All those who took part in this response deserve a great deal of credit. I am very grateful to you for this. Remember that bullets should only be used as a last resort. One should always learn to negotiate, including the military," Lukashenko said at a ceremony for graduates from military universities.
"Everything was done by the military in this conflict. We didn’t engage diplomats," Lukashenko said, adding, however, that Belarusian troops had used "the language of diplomacy" and achieved success.
Lukashenko reminded the audience of the details of the situation. "We noticed that the Ukrainians began to concentrate certain troops, including redeploying them from the front, the cream of the crop, to border areas. We did not conceal this from our people. We presented this information calmly. But people were alarmed. Remember, people are always more sensitive, and they read more into these things than we do," the Belarusian leader said. According to him, the authorities "had to make promises to people and respond."
Earlier, the Belarusian Defense Ministry reported that tensions were growing along the border with Ukraine. Ukraine was pulling troops, weapons and military equipment to the Belarusian border. The State Border Committee of Belarus also informed about the measures taken to additionally cover the border with Ukraine. It was also reported that a division of Polonez rocket artillery systems had been sent to the designated area with full ammunition in view of the tense border situation. On July 13, Lukashenko told a meeting on ensuring military security in the southern sector of operations that tensions on the border with Ukraine had been eliminated and troops had been withdrawn.