Lukashenko seeks security guarantees from Putin to protect Belarus 'like own territory'

Belarusian leader, Alexander Lukashenko, Russia's President Vladimir Putin's staunchest ally on Monday demanded that the Russian Federation protect Belarus "like its own territory." In a meeting with Russia's Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu in Minsk, Lukashenko reiterated that "this is the kind of guarantees Belarus needs" from its longtime ally, Belarusian state-owned news outlet Belta reported. In case of aggression against Belarus, the Russian Federation shall defend the territory of Belarus "like its own," Belarus' authoritarian leader told his Russian counterpart Shoigu. 

"I raised this question in the negotiations with the President of Russia. He completely supported me. He said we need to revise all our decrees and agreements – between Belarus and Russia – to see what international normative legal act we must sign now in order to ensure the full security of Belarus," Belarusian leader, Alexander Lukashenko was quoted as saying. 

'What security guarantees can the US even provide?': Lukashenko

Lukashenko, at the meeting, stated that he had raised these issues at the sitting of the Supreme State Council of the Union State, the union formed collaboratively between Russia and Belarus. Belarus' President noted that he discussed his demands with Russian President Putin before. Lukashenko underscored that the Western countries "do not fulfill the agreements" about the security guarantees that they had previously given under the framework of the Budapest Memorandum in exchange for the withdrawal of nuclear arms from the Belarusian territory. He cited the failed implementation of the Minsk agreement that sparked a conflict in neighbouring Ukraine. 

Budapest Memorandum "included oaths of all Western states and Russia to guarantee full security to Kazakhstan, Ukraine, and Belarus," said Lukashenko, adding that it also included "economic safety" but the West implemented the barrage of sanctions against Belarus and Russia. "What security guarantees can the US even provide us with? None. What they do is initiate aggression against us, as we can see now. We need full security guarantees from our brotherly Russia," the Belarusian leader told Russian Defense Minister. He also discussed with the latter the ongoing combat training and the unity of the "joint allied grouping" of the Russian and Belarusian forces with Shoigu. He thanked Russia for "keeping a few thousand Russian soldiers" in Belarus "despite all struggles".