President Volodymyr Zelensky’s administration dismissed Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko’s accusation that Ukraine “trains militants” and sends them to destabilize Belarus.
Speaking on TV Channel Ukraina 24, Serhii Nikiforov, Zelensky’s press secretary, said Lukashenko’s TK statement was “groundless.”
“It’s hard to say why he does so,” Nikiforov said. “We can only assume that by doing so Lukashenko’s trying to divert attention from the dramatic events that are taking place in Belarus.”
In fact, it is Lukashenko who might be sending violent people to Ukraine. Vitaly Shyshov, a prominent Belarusian activist who helped others flee to Ukraine, was found hanged in a Kyiv park on Aug. 3, raising the possibility that he was murdered.
Pavel Sheremet, a Belarusian journalist who was critical of Lukashenko’s government, was killed in a car explosion in downtown Kyiv in 2016.
Lukashenko claimed victory in the August 2020 Belarusian presidential elections, which many countries have declared rigged and refused to recognize. Hundreds of thousands of Belarusians came out to the streets to protest. Lukashenko’s government responded by killing and imprisoning activists, many of whom escaped to Ukraine.
As Lukashenko maintains his grip on power, he has grown closer with Russia and its president, Vladimir Putin. The Belarusian president stated that he does not plan to impose sanctions against Ukraine, but would join Putin in bringing Ukraine “to its knees” if he wanted to.
He added that he would recognize the illegally annexed Crimean peninsula as Russian territory and would not support Ukraine’s attempt to return the parts of Donbas that Russia has occupied since 2014.
The Ukrainian Foreign Ministry warned Minsk on Aug. 9 that supporting Russia’s occupation would have international consequences.
