Belarus’ authoritarian president said on Monday the former Soviet nation would form a new territorial defense force amid fighting in neighboring Ukraine.
President Alexander Lukashenko has cultivated close military ties with Russia, which used Belarusian territory to send troops to Ukraine nearly a year ago at the start of what the Kremlin calls its “special military operation.” Russia has also maintained around 10,000 troops in Belarus and the two countries have regularly conducted joint exercises as part of their military alliance.
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Speaking on Monday during a meeting with officials, Lukashenko said the country needs to form paramilitary units in every town or village to serve as a territorial defense to supplement the country’s 45,000 military “in case of aggression”. He added that every Belarusian man must learn to handle weapons “to protect his family and his home,” if necessary.
Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko will oversee the creation of a new paramilitary group to fight Ukrainian and Western forces in the ongoing conflict in Eastern Europe. (Vladimir Astapkovich, Sputnik, Kremlin pool photo via AP)
Defense Minister Viktor Khrenin said Belarus would train a force of up to 150,000 volunteers who would receive arms but keep their civilian jobs. He noted that its he members would form a military reserve in times of peace and could act as guerrillas in the event of war.
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While hailing the importance of defensive cooperation with Russia and expressing support for the Kremlin’s action in Ukraine, Lukashenko stressed that he would send Belarusian troops to Ukraine only if his country is attacked.
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The Kremlin has staunchly backed Lukashenko, who ruled Belarus with an iron fist for nearly three decades, helping him weather months of massive protests sparked by his re-election in an August 2020 vote that the opposition and the West denounced like rigged.
