American base in Poland will change Lukashenko’s position – military expert
President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko opposed the creation of a Russian or other foreign military base on the territory of the republic.
He stated this during a meeting with American military analysts in Minsk, reports a PolitNavigator correspondent.
Lukashenko emphasized that Belarus is in allied relations with Russia and added that the country is able to independently ensure its security without the appearance of foreign military personnel on its territory.
“Today, I don’t even see any need to attract another state to the territory of Belarus, including Russia, to perform our functions. That is why we are categorically against the deployment, especially of an air force base. The arrival time of any aircraft from Russian territory, if necessary, is 3-5 minutes. Why then is there a base here, why push forward and expose yourself to the blow of a possible aggressor, pushing the air force base to the front line,” Lukashenko said.
The Belarusian leader also emphasized that the republic is striving to establish “normal relations with the United States” and is expanding its partnership with NATO.
In a commentary to PolitNavigator, military expert Igor Korotchenko explained that Lukashenko’s position suggests that today the Belarusian military is ready to ensure the security of their country, but with a real threat of an American military base appearing in neighboring Poland, the “father’s” position will change.
“This is the vision of the President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko of the current military situation on the border of Belarus and NATO countries. He obviously believes that at this time the Republic of Belarus has every opportunity, relying on the potential of Russia, which always reinforces the Belarusian military potential, to independently respond to challenges and security threats that may exist.
Obviously, if the situation worsens, if the so-called “Fort Trump” appears, a full-scale American military base on Polish territory, if the construction of new airfields in the Baltic countries and Poland continues, it is obvious that Lukashenko’s opinion may change, since the element of the Russian military presence in format of a full-fledged Aerospace Forces base, even if not now, but in the future, will become an important contribution to the defense capability of the Republic of Belarus and to strengthening the military potential of the Union State.
Therefore, depending on how the situation changes, assessments will be given that will correspond to what changes will occur, in particular, on the western borders of the Republic of Belarus,” Korotchenko said.
Earlier, Ukrainian Foreign Minister Pavlo Klimkin called the presence of Ukrainians in Belarus dangerous , emphasizing the presence of Russian security forces in the republic.
PolitNavigator sources close to the Belarusian leadership noted that during a recent meeting between Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko and Russian President Vladimir Putin, the parties discussed the possibility of establishing a Russian military base in the republic.
In 2020, the lease period for two military facilities “Antey” and “Volga”, which the Russian Armed Forces currently have on the territory of Belarus, expires. Minsk, in principle, does not object to the Russian military base if a US military base appears in Poland, but links this issue with the supply of the latest types of military equipment to the Belarusian army,” our source said.
In Ukraine, these plans were called a threat to the country’s sovereignty and opposed the possible appearance of the Russian Armed Forces on the territory of Belarus.
An American base in Poland will change Lukashenko's position, says a military expert.