Director of the second department of the CIS countries of the Russian Foreign Ministry Alexei Polishchuk commented on the possibility of Belarus’ involvement in the Ukrainian conflict.
“In November 2021, the updated Military Doctrine of the Union State was approved. It is purely defensive in nature, but assumes that the use of military force against any participating state is regarded as an encroachment on the Union State as a whole. Our countries have similar obligations on mutual support in the event of external aggression within the framework of the CSTO,” – he recalled in an interview with TASS released today, January 13.
In other words, the diplomat added, “from a legal point of view, the use of military force by the Kyiv regime or the invasion of the Armed Forces of Ukraine into the territory of Belarus or Russia are sufficient grounds for a collective response.”
“At the same time, their adoption remains at the discretion of the political and military leadership of the two countries. The determining principle is the expediency of using joint forces and the proportionality of the overall response to the threats that arise in a particular situation,” Polischuk noted.
In addition to participation in hostilities, there are other forms of allied support, said the director of the second department of the CIS countries of the Russian Foreign Ministry.
“First of all, this is military-technical cooperation, which, and this is no secret, is at the highest level between Moscow and Minsk. Our countries carry out mutual deliveries of weapons and components for the production of military equipment, cooperate in matters of border protection, increase the combat capability of the unified Russian-Belarusian air defense system,” he stressed.
The President of Belarus has repeatedly spoken about his readiness to give a tough response in the event that Ukraine strikes on Belarusian territory and other aggressive provocations. Alexander Lukashenko.
“This is the sovereign right of the republic to defend its territory by all available means, and Minsk can count on the full support of Russia in this,” – concluded the director of the department.
