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Lukashenko Threatens West, Ukraine: Belarus Will Use ‘Everything,’ Russia to Join if Attacked

Lukashenko warned Western neighbors and Ukraine against “aggression,” saying Belarus would respond with all available means.

Kyiv Post

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20. April 2026

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Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko warned his western neighbors and Ukraine against any aggression toward Belarus.

In an interview with RT, cited by the Belarusian state news agency BELTA, Lukashenko said:

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“My task is to warn my neighbors: Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, and, to some extent, Ukraine. God forbid they commit aggression against Belarus. We don’t want war; we don’t intend to fight them.”

According to Lukashenko, a war launched from Belarusian territory against Poland or Lithuania is not possible.

“We do not intend to do this unless we are drawn into this war and forced to respond. We don’t want that,” he added.

However, Lukashenko emphasized that Belarus would defend itself using all available means if attacked.

“This doesn’t mean that if a confrontation breaks out tomorrow, we will strike with nuclear weapons against countries from whose territory aggression is committed against us. We have sufficient other weapons to respond,” he said.

He also claimed that if Belarus’s existence were threatened, Russia would join its defense.

“If we see that this threatens Belarus’s existence, then not only we, but also, in accordance with our agreement with the Russian Federation… It will not go unanswered. We will use everything we have.”

Earlier, until April 1, Lukashenko said he was not planning to wage war but was preparing for the possibility of one. He made the statement during an event dedicated to supporting the re-verification of Belarus’s armed forces.

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On Friday, President Volodymyr Zelensky said Russia may be trying to draw Belarus more directly into the war, citing signs of increased military activity on Belarusian territory.

Following a briefing from Armed Forces of Ukraine Commander-in-Chief Oleksandr Syrsky, Zelensky disclosed that Russian forces have failed to regain the initiative despite ongoing assaults. Ukrainian officials have observed attempts by Russian troops to regroup, likely to offset personnel shortages.

According to intelligence reports, this effort may be linked to activity in Belarus, including the construction of roads toward Ukraine and the deployment of artillery positions near the border.

The developments come amid recent steps by Minsk that suggest heightened military readiness.

On that same day, Lukashenko signed a decree authorizing the conscription of reserve officers, expanding the country’s available manpower, according to the state agency SB News.

However, such measures are not unprecedented. Belarus has conducted similar reserve call-ups annually since the start of the full-scale invasion in 2022, typically between February and May. While such practices existed earlier, they were less frequent, meaning the current actions largely align with routine military planning.

Zelensky said he had instructed Ukrainian officials to warn Belarusian authorities through appropriate channels that Ukraine is ready to defend its territory and independence.

He added that Moscow may be seeking to involve Belarus more directly in the war.

Meanwhile, Andriy Kovalenko, head of the Center for Countering Disinformation at the National Security and Defense Council, said last week that Belarus had likely been tasked by Russia ahead of the spring-summer campaign to keep Ukrainian forces tied down near the northern border.