Russia says it will defend Lukashenko in the event of an uprising

Russia will support Alexander Lukashenko and his government in the event of a popular armed uprising against the leader according to Kremlin Press Secretary Dmitry Peskov. 

“This neighboring country is our partner, ally, and fraternal state,” Peskov explained to reporters from RIA Novosti according to an English translation from Ukrainska Pravda. 

“Naturally, the Russian Federation has obligations with regard to ensuring the security of Belarus, which we will do in the face of such an evident threat,” Peskov continued. 

Peskov’s remarks were most likely aimed at quelling fears that a popular armed uprising could happen in Belarus after a high-ranking general in Poland suggested its possibility. 

While speaking with Polsat News, the former commander of Polish Land Forces said his nation was preparing for a Belarusian uprising according to The New Voice of Ukraine. 

General Waldemar Skrzypczak suggested that if Ukraine’s counter-offensive succeeded then the Belarusian soldiers in their army eventually used their skills to liberate Belarus. 

“We are preparing for an uprising in Belarus because it is coming,” General Skrzypczak explained on Polsat News according to an English translation by Ukrainiska Pravda. 

General Skrzypczak suggested that Poland needed to be ready to support any military units carrying out operations against Lukashenko, but gave few details on his meaning. 

“Preparing for an uprising in Belarus is crucial. We have reason to help them, just like we help Ukrainians,” the former commander of the Polish Land Forces asserted. 

According to Ukrainska Pravda, General Skrzypczak believes that the people of Belarus will support the volunteers fighting in Ukraine if they return to challenge Lukashenko. 

General Skrzypczak explained that Lukashenko no longer had the military capability to prevent an uprising and said Russia wouldn’t help much because of its own problems. 

In Peskov’s remarks, he called Poland a “hostile” state according to a Ukrainska Pravda translation and went on to claim the country was "engulfed in Russophobic hysteria."

While both leaders' comments may seem like just more geopolitical saber-rattling, they reveal the very dangerous situation the world now finds itself in after more than a year of war. 

On May 25th, Russia moved forward with its plan to deploy nuclear weapons in Belarus that President Vladimir Putin had announced in March according to a Reuters report.   

While the nuclear weapons being moved to Belarus are only tactical in nature and don’t have the same destructive power as more traditional devices, they are still worrying. 

“We must do everything to prevent Putin’s plan to deploy nuclear weapons in Belarus, as this will ensure Russia’s control over Belarus for years to come,” exiled Belarusian opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya told the Associated Press. 

“This will further jeopardize the security of Ukraine and all of Europe,” Tsikhanouskaya added. What will follow now is still unknown. But you can never rule out the possibility that these weapons could be used against pro-democracy Belarusian forces.