‘Only by joining forces can we counter threats’

The President of Belarus, Aleksandr Lukashenko, met with the heads of delegations who arrived in Minsk to participate in the 19th Meeting of Heads of Security Bodies and Intelligence Services of the CIS

The Head of State called it symbolic that Belarus is hosting this meeting, in the era of wars and political cataclysms, 

“Despite the political and sanctions pressure from the West, primarily the United States, we continue to develop our peaceful stable state (doing everything for this) based on the principles of social justice.

There is a great demand for justice now in our states. But, unfortunately, the situation around us is not getting safer. Tensions are growing in various regions of the world. Some simmering conflicts are turning hot, and hybrid proxy wars are being unleashed everywhere. Not only proxies.”
The President also noted the complete degradation of a number of international structures — from the OSCE and the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons to the International Organisation of the Red Cross, “They have turned into demagogy platforms and tools for serving the interests of global players. Moreover, we spend a lot of money on various kinds of conferences, realising that they will not yield anything. The last one took place in Dubai.

They have reached the point of absurdity. The European Peace Fund allocates funds for the war in Ukraine... The world is plunging into chaos with unpredictable consequences. It is not yet possible to find even a fragile balance…

In such conditions, the role of intelligence services increases, whose most important task is to ensure the protection of their states and citizens from internal and external threats.”
Aleksandr Lukashenko emphasised that the effectiveness of foreign intelligence activities in obtaining reliable, relevant and, above all, forecast information, allowing country leaders to make informed decisions in the interests of their people, is of particular importance.
“The main thing here is to one-up our opponents, to thwart the scenarios they are trying to materialise. As I have been told, one of the main tasks of the NATO intelligence community and their allies is the disintegration of the post-Soviet space. They want to drive a wedge in our centuries-old good neighbourly relations, and then set us against each other. We went through this. Therefore, I urge you not to sever your relations under any circumstances, even if one of our states adheres to a different point of view in the policies that this or that state is pursuing today,” the Belarusian leader said.
The President added that opponents are trying to put pressure on the population using destructive methods, carry out cyber attacks on the critical infrastructure of government agencies, and spread fake news and hoaxes.
The President deems it necessary to focus on the economy, “If everything is fine inside the country, no one will dare interfere. Economy is the key to stability.”
The Belarusian leader warned against breaking ties, as Ukraine did. Aleksandr Lukashenko recalled that for many years he had called on the then Presidents of Ukraine not to rush to leave the CIS. The Belarusian leader gave the same advice to ex-President of Georgia Mikheil Saakashvili. 
“It’s easy to leave. It’s more difficult to come back. In politics, it is very important to be patient and not to take hasty decisions,” the Head of State said.
Aleksandr Lukashenko once again emphasised that the above-mentioned threats can only be counted by joining forces. “Our relationships of trust rely on our common history (you can’t change it anymore), economic, scientific, educational potential and interpersonal contacts inherited from the once united country. This is our economic space. Yes, a lot here depends on Russia. But let’s be honest: Russia becomes different every month, every year. More than ever, today, due to certain conditions, Russia is the cementing, unifying link of the entire post-Soviet space. You know, due to what conditions. Let’s preserve this economic space. Let’s preserve this common market. Is it really not clear? Look at Ukraine,” the President said.
The Head of State emphasised that the Russian side was provoked into a conflict, including by discriminating against citizens in Ukraine on the basis of nationality. Aleksandr Lukashenko also added: the United States behaved vilely towards the Ukrainian President. The Head of State noted that in the media the behaviour of Vladimir Zelensky is often called arrogant, but he simply demands that Western partners comply with agreements. 
The Head of State also recalled the conflict between Vladimir Zelensky and the military. Aleksandr Lukashenko talked about the internal political situation in Ukraine during meetings with foreign and Belarusian journalists a few months ago. For example, in February the President said that peace should be negotiated primarily with the Ukrainian military.

“Ukraine’s military have a somewhat, to put it mildly, different point of view than Ukrainian politicians and President Zelensky. And Vladimir Zelensky is well aware of it. The most professional military are most convinced that the war must be stopped. You will see that we — and the Russians in the first place — will have to negotiate with the Ukrainian military all the same. And there are no politicians, but you see what kind of politicians there are — talking heads have been gathered from all over the world. Talking, you know, is not doing. Everyone knows how to talk, but they haven’t been there to go fight at the front or at least go there during a battle. 

People are thrown there like cannon fodder. And they are ready to sacrifice millions of Ukrainians — end quote. The military understands this. And the military will be able to come to an agreement,” Aleksandr Lukashenko emphasised back then.
During the meeting, the President of Belarus noted the activity of foreign intelligence services on the territory of the country, “We see the activity of foreign intelligence services on our territory. Forms of their work are becoming more and more aggressive. They have started to insert not just spies but terrorist agents here. They are trying to create extremist cells, form some regiments out of our fugitives, and recruit mercenaries.”
Aleksandr Lukashenko stressed that he was not exaggerating, but on the contrary, he could not reveal everything about the matter, “You understand me. We and the Russian Federation have detained probably about two dozen groups of terrorists already, who primarily seek to carry out terrorist operations in Russia and Belarus.”
Highly publicised events in Machulishchi (an attempt to attack a military airfield and destroy Russian equipment), in Grodno, attempts to cripple railroad in different regions of the country were mentioned as evidence. 
“We see very serious activity in Belarus’ territory. It is clear that this ‘sanitary cordon’ — a so-called thousand-kilometre window. Some call it a balcony or a window. It is clear that they will constantly aim to cut it off in order to reach Moscow through Smolensk as always. Frankly speaking, we cannot allow this and will stick to this line together with our allies in every possible way,” the Belarusian leader added.
Aleksandr Lukashenko said that Belarus supported and will in every possible way support its ally, Russia.

“They shouldn’t complain about us. Our policy is transparent, open and we will always follow this policy. We are forced to defend ourselves and help our allies. This policy will continue from now on,” the Head of State concluded. 

Director of the Foreign Intelligence Service of Russia (SVR) Sergei Naryshkin firstly thanked the Belarusian side for the opportunity to hold the event in Minsk and separately expressed gratitude to Aleksandr Lukashenko. 

Sergei Naryshkin especially noted the Belarusian experience of countering external pressure, “Belarus has repeatedly experienced overt aggression from the Western bloc led by the United States of America that apparently hates Minsk’s steadfast determination to defend its interests, and the interests of its state and citizens. The Belarusian government and the public have always managed to withstand this onslaught with dignity and have proved that pressure from the Euro-Atlantic bloc must and can be resisted… The President of Belarus gave a very useful piece of political advice on how to act in the current difficult situation, when the Western bloc is abusing its position and trying to destabilise the situation in our countries, to disunite, to separate and isolate the Commonwealth countries. However, we are not giving in and will not give in.”

Based on materials of sb.by and belta.by

Photos by belta