But not “against third countries”
China and Belarus want to move closer together militarily
08/17/2023 1:01 p.m
China and Belarus are Russia supporters. The behavior of the countries is closely monitored, especially in relation to the attack on Ukraine. Both states are now announcing in Minsk that they want to cooperate more closely militarily. However, this should not be directed against other states.
In Minsk, China’s new Defense Minister Li Shangfu and the Belarusian ruler Alexander Lukashenko confirmed their intention to strengthen military cooperation. “All our cooperation – and it is very important – is in no case directed against third countries. We don’t need that. We have to protect our states and our peoples,” said Lukashenko, according to the Belarusian state news agency Belta in Minsk. “The aim of my visit to Belarus is to implement important agreements at the level of heads of state and to further strengthen bilateral military cooperation,” Li Shangfu said, according to the Russian translation. He had previously attended the Moscow Security Conference.
Military cooperation was agreed during Lukashenko’s state visit to China earlier this year. Lukashenko announced military maneuvers with China for 2024. Lukashenko emphasized that militarily Belarus relies primarily on its “friends” Russia and China. Belarus and China are on the same page when it comes to building a multipolar world. Like Russian President Vladimir Putin, Lukashenko has repeatedly spoken out against US supremacy.
Thousands of Russian soldiers are stationed in Belarus, and Lukashenko had also made the country available as a staging area for attacks on Ukraine. Kyiv sees Minsk as a war party. In the course of the tensions, Russia recently had Iskander missiles that can be equipped with nuclear warheads stationed in Belarus. To this end, Lukashenko had the constitution amended so that a nuclear-weapon-free status is no longer stipulated. Several Belarusian fighter jets have also been converted to the new weapons. Russia insists that it retains control of tactical nuclear weapons.