ASTANA, 14 October (BelTA) – It is necessary to sit down at the negotiating table to settle the military conflict in Ukraine; the USA should get involved in this negotiating process instead of supplying weapons to Ukraine, Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko said in an interview with the U.S. broadcaster NBC in Astana on 14 October, BelTA has learned.
The head of state was asked how Russian President Vladimir Putin reacts to the developments in Ukraine. “Doesn’t he seem to be tense, maybe nervous, under pressure?” the journalist asked noting that Russia is not yet winning in Ukraine.
“He is the president of a huge country. It always comes with some kind of pressure. I am telling you this as president. As for the Ukrainian conflict, you say that he is not winning there. Well, you are not winning this war, either. Fifty countries are actually fighting today against Russia on the territory of Ukraine. You are not scoring victories there. Therefore, it is necessary to look for ways out of this situation. And I must tell you that unlike you Westerners, President Putin has suggested solutions more than once. Apparently people just do not want to listen to him and hear him at the moment. But they should. This is our position as well. And, you know, the looming deadlock (this is where the developments in Ukraine will take us) is also acknowledged by some members of NATO. And not some, but many of them,” the Belarusian leader said.
In this regard, Aleksandr Lukashenko cited the example of Türkiye. The head of state met with Türkiye President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on the sidelines of the CICA summit in Astana the day before. “We agreed that in the near future we would hold high-level talks where we would also discuss Ukraine. I will pay a visit to Ankara. I noticed that President Erdogan, the leader of one of the key NATO members, is not happy about the ongoing developments. They do not even hint, but openly demand that it is necessary to sit down at the negotiating table and come to an agreement. The USA should get involved in this process instead of supplying the increasing number of the most sophisticated weapons to Ukraine,” the president said.
“In fact, no types of weapons, including American ones, will change the situation at the front lines,” the Belarusian leader added.