Belarusian forces not taking part in invasion, Lukashenko claims
“Our troops are taking no part in this operation,” Lukashenko said
Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko attends a meeting with Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin in Minsk, Belarus April 16, 2021. Sputnik/Alexander Astafyev/Pool via REUTERS
Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko has claimed that his country's troops are not taking part in Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
"Our troops are taking no part in this operation," Lukashenko, who is a close ally of Putin, was quoted as saying according to a report by the country's Belta state news agency.
Ukraine's border guard service said earlier that Russian troops had attacked Ukraine from Belarus – where they had been staging joint large-scale military exercises with Belarusian forces – as well as from Russia itself with Belarusian support.
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