Lukashenko accuses the US and Germany of financing militants in Belarus
The President of Belarus, Alexander Lukashenko, said that the armed militants who were allegedly preparing attacks in the country were funded by the USA and Germany, as he stated on Friday, March 24th, during a visit to the Grodno region, BelTA news agency reports.
"They are offended because they heard my statement made in Mogilev about Ukraine, Lithuania, and Poland. But what if it is really like that?! The Americans and Germans funded this through the Poles and Lithuanians. Most of the money remained there, but our people led and lead pretty good lives, everyone owns mansions and drive Mercedes," Lukashenko said.
He added that the Belarusian authorities should not be afraid to stop illegal actions. "If the authorities get scared, I will be in trouble, but you will be in a more unbearable situation," the Belarusian leader concluded.
The day before, the State Security Agency of Belarus stated that detained activists belonging to the White Legion and Young Front groups were going to take part in riots in Belarus. On March 21st, Lukashenko reported the “detention of two dozen militants” who were preparing an armed provocation. "One of the camps was in the area of Babruysk and Asipovichy. The rest of the camps are in Ukraine, Lithuania or Poland. I won’t make any exact claims, but they are there somewhere. The money came in through Poland and Lithuania," the head of state said.
Vilnius called Lukashenko's words fabrications, and Kyiv accused the Belarusian leader of insulting the honor and dignity of Ukrainians.
On March 20th, Lukashenko stated that the "fifth column" and the "scumbags" who fled abroad intend to destabilize the situation in Belarus with the support of Western special services.