President Points to Need to React to Aggression Amid Attempts to Stir Things Up in Belarus

Alexander Lukashenko stressed that "given the current domestic developments and, most importantly, the external situation, I would like to hear your assessments of the internal political and military situation around Belarus"

Belarus' President Alexander Lukashenko  Peter Kovalev/TASS

Belarus' President Alexander Lukashenko

© Peter Kovalev/TASS

MINSK, February 27. /TASS/. Attempts are being made to stir up the situation in Belarus so the country’s law enforcement agencies should react to the slightest aggression, President Alexander Lukahsneko said on Monday.

"We are talking about discipline and doing your duty. Particularly on the border,"he noted at a meeting with senior law enforcement officials, according to the BelTA news agency. "This concerns the police, the KGB and military officers, as all of us should be able to detect the slightest aggression on the border against our country in order to take the necessary retaliatory measures,"Lukashenko added.

"They will use any opportunity to stir up the situation in Belarus. And they will continue to do that. I ask and demand that you comply with these instructions,"the Belarusian president said.

He stressed that "given the current domestic developments and, most importantly, the external situation, I would like to hear your assessments of the internal political and military situation around Belarus.""I would like to reiterate and demand that you maintain the strictest discipline in the units of the Interior Ministry and the KGB,"the head of state emphasized. According to him, there are a lot of military service members in Belarus. "They are all armed. These are people who are focused on defending their Fatherland. We need to take advantage of that,"Lukashenko said.

Ahead of a three-day visit to China, the president held a closed-door meeting with senior law enforcement officials, including the state secretary of the country’s Security Council, the interior and defense ministers, as well as the chairmen of the KGB and the State Border Committee.

Minsk, Beijing to sign papers on cooperation in politics, economy — envoy

According to Xie Xiaoyong, the sides will have an in-depth exchange of opinions on bilateral relations, as well as main international and regional issues

MINSK, February 27. /TASS/. Minsk and Beijing will sign a number of documents on cooperation, including in politics, economy and trade, during Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko’s visit to China, Chinese envoy to the republic Xie Xiaoyong said Monday.

"A number of papers will be signed in such areas as politics, economy, trade, finances, industry, agriculture, science and technology, sports, tourism, healthcare, inter-regional cooperation, mass media and others," he said in an interview for BelTA.

According to the envoy, the sides will have an in-depth exchange of opinions on bilateral relations, as well as main international and regional issues.

"Every visit of Alexander Lukashenko to China brings the bilateral relations further and becomes a milestone event in the history of the Chinese-Belarusian relations," the diplomat added.

Lukashenko will make a state visit to the People’s Republic of China on February 28 and March 2. He will have negotiations with Chinese leader Xi Jinping in both narrow and expanded attendance.

Putin, Lukashenko always in touch, not every interaction reported — Kremlin

Earlier, the Belarusian leader said that he had a lengthy conversation with Putin on February 24

MOSCOW, February 27. /TASS/. Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Belarusian counterpart Alexander Lukashenko maintain constant contact while the Kremlin does not report every interaction between them, Kremlin Spokesman Dmitry Peskov said in a conversation with journalists on Monday.

"The presidents interact rather frequently and we do not report their every contact by far. They are indeed constantly maintaining very intensive, close dialogue," he said.

Earlier, Lukashenko said that he had a lengthy conversation with Putin on February 24.

Before that, the presidents interacted in person in Novo-Ogaryovo on February 17.