Belarus highlights Russia’s willingness to negotiate

Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko has emphasised the urgency of negotiating a resolution to the ongoing crisis in Ukraine.

Speaking during a meeting on military security, Lukashenko highlighted the readiness of the Russian side to engage in talks despite existing distrust from Ukrainian counterparts, Caliber.Az reports citing the Russian media.

"We are not enemies of Ukrainians. These are our people, people like us, like Russians. We need to reach an agreement quickly," Lukashenko stated.

Acknowledging the presence of enough normal people in Ukraine, particularly among the military, Lukashenko expressed optimism about the potential for negotiations.

"The Russians are prepared to negotiate and reach an agreement," he added.

The comments by President Lukashenko come amidst heightened tensions and diplomatic efforts surrounding the conflict in Ukraine, with international stakeholders seeking avenues to de-escalate and find a peaceful resolution.

Moreover, President Lukashenko has announced the de-escalation of tensions at the country's border with Ukraine, leading to the withdrawal of additional troops deployed there.

This decision follows a period of heightened military activity prompted by a security incident and Ukrainian troop movements near the border.

According to Belarus's defence ministry, which initially reinforced the border in response to perceived threats and conducted readiness tests with multiple launch rocket systems, the situation has stabilized. President Lukashenko, quoted by the official BelTA news agency during a border region inspection, confirmed that Belarusian intelligence indicated Ukraine had withdrawn reinforcements from sensitive border areas.

"Those [Ukrainian] troops brought in as reinforcements are now gone," BelTA reported Lukashenko as saying. "There are currently no difficulties with the Ukrainians, and I hope there will be none."

During a meeting with regional officials, Lukashenko emphasized the return of Belarusian troops to their designated bases.

"We need to pull back our troops from the border so it is clear that we have no intentions of military engagement or concentration of forces, except for special operations forces," he stated.

Ukraine's border guards, however, refuted claims of an additional deployment by Belarus from the outset, stating that Belarusian authorities had created and subsequently lifted the perceived threat themselves.

Russia had expressed concern over Belarus statements and military movements. Despite Belarus's role in allowing Russia to use its territory for the February 2022 invasion of Ukraine, Lukashenko has reiterated that Belarus does not intend to involve its troops directly in the conflict.

The war between Ukraine and Russia that began in February 2022 has been a significant geopolitical and humanitarian crisis.

The conflict escalated following Russia's invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022. The conflict has had severe humanitarian consequences, with thousands of casualties reported on both sides, massive displacement of civilians within Ukraine, and a refugee crisis as Ukrainians fled to neighboring countries seeking safety. Both conventional and unconventional warfare tactics have been employed, including airstrikes, artillery bombardments, and cyber warfare.