Lukashenko claims he was asked to sign a non-aggression pact with Ukraine

(Patria) - Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko said he was asked to conclude a non-aggression pact with Ukraine, the state news agency Belta reported.

Lukashenko, a close ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin, revealed the alleged offer at a meeting of government and police officials, where he also accused the West of allowing its territory to be used to train and arm militants who could destabilize the situation in Belarus.

"They are asking us not to go to war with Ukraine under any circumstances, not to send our troops there. They are proposing that we conclude a non-aggression pact," said the Belarusian president, leaving it unclear whether the alleged offer came from the West or from Ukraine.

Minsk allowed Moscow to use Belarusian territory to send troops into Ukraine on February 24 last year. However, its own troops have not fought in the war so far, while it has intensified joint military training with Russian forces deployed in Belarus, Reuters writes. In the same speech, Belta quoted Lukashenko as accusing Ukraine of hosting militants who could be part of an alleged long-term Western plan to destabilize his country.

"I don't know why Ukrainians need this," Lukashenko said, adding that his security forces would respond sharply to any threat to the internal order and that he did not want a repeat of the mass protests against him in 2020 and 2021, which he described as part of a Western regime change plot.