End of inadmissibility. On Friday March 31, the Kremlin indicated, through the voice of its spokesman Dmitry Peskov, that it ruled out stopping its offensive against Ukraine. And this, despite the call for a truce from his main ally, the Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko. “As for Ukraine, nothing changes: the special military operation continues, since it is the only way to achieve the goals set by our country today,” Dmitry Peskov told reporters.
Moments earlier, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, a close Russian ally, had called for a “truce” in Ukraine and “no preconditions” talks between Moscow and Kyiv. “We have to stop now, before the escalation begins. I take the risk of suggesting a cessation of hostilities,” said Alexander Lukashenko, in power since 1994, during an address to the nation.
“It is possible – and must – to settle all territorial, reconstruction, security and other issues at the negotiating table without preconditions,” he added. The Belarusian leader, who holds the West and Ukraine responsible for the conflict, also said he fears a “nuclear” war because of Western support for Kiev, while Vladimir Putin earlier announced his intention to deploy nuclear weapons ” tactics” on Belarusian territory.
“Because of the United States and its satellites, an all-out war has been unleashed” in Ukraine, he said, believing that, therefore, “nuclear fires lie in wait on the horizon”. “You all understand and know that there is only one solution: negotiations! Negotiations without preconditions,” he said.
Stressing that the “military-industrial complex is running at full speed in Russia” and that Ukraine was “flooded with Western weapons”, Lukashenko worried about an upcoming “escalation” that will lead to many deaths. Belarus is not a direct party to the conflict in Ukraine, but it loaned its territory to the Russian military for its offensive on the Ukrainian capital last year and to carry out strikes, according to Kyiv.
Moscow and Minsk also conducted joint exercises and created a military grouping consisting of soldiers from both countries. President Putin announced on March 26 his intention to deploy “tactical” nuclear weapons in Belarus, an announcement that caused concern in Ukraine and the West.
Russia and Ukraine held talks in 2022, but these fizzled out in the face of intransigence from both sides. Subsequent attempts at mediation yielded no results. Moscow believes that the conflict can only end if kyiv yields to its demands, in particular that Ukraine accepts the annexation of five of its regions. For its part, kyiv believes that the prerequisite for peace is the withdrawal of Russian forces from its territory, without exception.
