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12 Mar 2014

Belarus will respond to reinforcement of Nato on its borders

MINSK, 12 March (BelTA) - Belarus will respond adequately to the reinforcement of the Nato forces near its borders, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko said at a meeting of the Security Council to discuss the preliminary results of the first phase of the snap inspection of the combat readiness of the Armed Forces of the Republic of Belarus, BelTA learned.

"We have lately seen the escalation of the conflict, and this is a fact already. This is not in Syria, not in Libya or Iraq. This is near our borders. It affects our interests, and we cannot sit like a mouse under the broom", Alexander Lukashenko said.

“But I emphasize again: we are not going to fuss, let alone go ballistic about it. We will respond adequately. If the Nato decided, together with the Americans to build up a group of the air force near our borders, we will not be watching and do nothing about it. They deployed additional half a dozen fighter-interceptors or some other aircraft in Lithuania, and they fly near our borders. I suggest we act appropriately. We are already acting. The Defense Minister has received my instruction, and it, as I was reported, is being implemented,” the President said.

According to Alexander Lukashenko, Belarus and Russia have a joint group of troops on the western border. "This is in sync with the Union State treaty between Russia and Belarus. The group has a plan of action, including the plan of action in such cases. This is not a military conflict or a war. We are not going to announce mobilization or put our armed forces on combat alert. Yet we have to plan an appropriate response in such cases. This is the obligation of not only the Republic of Belarus but also the Russian Federation,” he said.

“We have absolutely nothing to hide. Today I want to instruct the Defense Ministry (we worked through these issues before, knowing that anything can happen) to put an appropriate plan into operation. Since they are having an exercise near our borders... We started checking the combat readiness of our troops a long time ago, before the conflict. The first stage is over. The State Secretary will report on the results of the first phase. The second stage is still to go. I think, it is time for us to start the second phase of the inspection, and as part of this inspection, to deploy, if necessary, additional forces and to conduct appropriate exercises as our neighbors in Poland are doing,” the President said.

“We will take an appropriate action. We do not need to mobilize the Armed Forces. We have enough units ready for rapid response if necessary. They can be deployed on a short notice and they are fully equipped. Therefore there is no need for additional call-ups. We will do it, if needed, in a routine manner. We have enough combat-ready people in the Interior Ministry. We do not hide it. These are well-trained military people. If necessary, they, border troops will be involved. This is an algorithm of our actions which I as Commander-In-Chief set before our military,” the President said.

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