Belarusian dictator alexander Lukashenko said that Vladimir Putin did not ask him for permission to attack Ukraine from the territory of Belarus. He also noted that Putin did not ask him to provide Belarusian troops for the war in Ukraine. Lukashenka said this in an interview with BBC, UNN reports.
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When asked why he allowed the Kremlin to attack Ukraine partly from Belarusian territory, Lukashenko replied:
"How do you know that I authorized the use of Belarusian territory? There were exercises involving several thousand Russian soldiers. Putin began to withdraw these troops from where they were in southern Belarus, along the road that runs along the border with Ukraine. At some point, he redirected some of these troops to Kyiv. I'm sure they were provoked. Putin decides how he withdraws his troops. He could go through Kyiv. Or he could go through Minsk."
The Belarusian dictator also said that he and Putin did not even call on the phone that day. "No. He did not call me. And I did not call him. These are his troops, and he has the right to withdraw them as he pleases," Lukashenko said.
When asked whether Putin had asked him to provide Belarusian troops for the Kremlin's war in Ukraine, Lukashenko replied:
"Never. Neither he, nor (former Defense Minister - ed.) Sergei Shoigu, nor the current Defense Minister Andrei Belousov have ever raised this issue."
Lukashenko called "nonsense" the information that North Korean troops are being sent to support Russia's war in Ukraine, but admitted that this would be a serious escalation of the conflict.