Lukashenko on the defense system of Belarus: We must prepare for war

The country's defense system has already been created in Belarus. Alexander Lukashenko said this today, September 24, at a meeting during a visit to the 230th combined arms training ground Obuz-Lesnovsky.

"I have been saying for a long time: we are a compact, small country in terms of population. We don't Russia, especially not China, not India and not the NATO bloc. According to our economic capabilities, we cannot maintain an army that is needed for war, so we need to adapt," he said.

According to him, the Armed Forces are called upon to defend the state, but if necessary, the territorial defense and the people's militia will be promptly organized. In this case, the number of defenders of the motherland will increase many times.

"But for this it is necessary to have unity and discipline in the country. We have it," Lukashenko stressed.

In this regard, the Belarusian leader instructed to update the tasks of territorial defense taking into account modern conditions of warfare.

"And the people's militia — so that a person who does not get into the army, but is well-versed in weapons, can protect the house. Our system is defined. We check it: to the Secretary of State (of the Security Council. —EADaily) the task is set in iron so that everything is checked not for show, starting from the people's militia to Armed forces. That is, we have created the defense system of our country," the President of Belarus stressed.

He also recalled that he had previously given instructions to put on special account citizens who served in special units of law enforcement agencies. In addition, in the Belarusian society of hunters and fishermen, everyone who owns a weapon should be ready to defend the country if necessary.

"We will check all units in the near future. Why do I insist on this: this special training cost us a lot. To train such commandos is a lot of money… We have a lot of hunters, they should have their own unit with their own weapons. And we need to look at this: how it is created, what is created. Where will we train better snipers than they have? Therefore, this should also be used, treated in a masterly way. And not to count, as in Soviet times: they will give us money, we will build a military camp, we will recruit a lot of people there, we will teach them, as we usually do in the army, and then they will learn to fight. We will put the economy in this way, our poor people will walk. We cannot invest such huge amounts of money in such a training system," Lukashenko said.

He also recalled his instruction to improve the training of military personnel in the army itself.

"So that there is no excessive drill, so that the guys are physically ready. Physical training, as well as fire, tactical and the study of modern weapons, should be in the first place. That is, the army needs to be shaken up and brought into perfect condition, as long as we have unity in society and discipline. We will finish the "disassembly" in agriculture on harvesting and other issues, the winter period will come — the inspection will be the most severe in all directions. The military in general. Not only the army, but also the Ministry of Internal Affairs, the State Security Committee. Everyone has tasks assigned to them, everyone knows that they must be fulfilled," the Belarusian leader stressed.

In addition, he noted that Belarus needs to further strengthen its defense capability and readiness to confront the enemy in the event of military aggression.

"The old formula: if you want peace, get ready for war. I want to emphasize once again (although why should we justify ourselves to anyone here) that we are not going to fight, we don't want to fight... all this has already been said. They are listening to this, but they are doing their job — our opponents, our rivals. Those who are preparing against us, we will speak directly, fight. Therefore, we need to prepare for war. And God grant that this war does not happen. No matter how acute the situation around Belarus may be, we have not yet observed any tendencies to unleash a war against us," the Belarusian leader said.

Alexander Lukashenko also recalled that, taking into account the experience of both the events at the front in the neighboring state and military conflicts in recent years in the world, Belarus has already reformed the army four times.

"This is probably the fifth time we are approaching the modernization of our own Armed Forces," he said.

At the same time, he stated the importance of developing unmanned aerial vehicles that can seriously affect the course of the war, but "without trained soldiers and reliable weapons, it will not be possible to defend effectively."

"Therefore, yes, drones are a serious novelty. Yes, she probably won't turn the war around if it happens. But it will significantly affect the course of hostilities. Drones are a serious matter. The case, as the military say, is very effective and profitable from the point of view of war. It's creepy to say that, but nevertheless. Today, as I said, the warring parties do not spare drones in order to hunt for one person. So it's cheaper than training a fighter. Therefore, yes — drones," the President of Belarus said.

He also noted that in order to effectively counter enemy drones, it is also necessary to have modern equipment — electronic warfare systems (EW). According to him, in Belarus it is necessary to be ready "to counteract this infection."

"We have known this for a long time. This is our Belarusian theme. And in In the Soviet Union, we were at the forefront (positions. — EADaily). It's very useful now. Therefore, we must and can create the most modern systems for suppressing unmanned aerial vehicles and not only them. A lot has been done, but more needs to be done," Lukashenko said.

In addition, the Belarusian leader reminded about another important direction in the modern war — the counter-battery struggle.

"We, the military, have a new term. And not just the term. A new process in combat. You were attacked by artillery — you must instantly indicate the coordinates from where you are attacked, and respond and cover this artillery. It must be done quickly. But for this it is necessary to have the appropriate systems. And much more, which is demonstrated by the practice of combat," the Belarusian leader said.

Recall, Lukashenko has repeatedly stated that NATO countries are hatching aggressive plans against Belarus. In this regard, the country decided to strengthen the work to strengthen the state's defense capability.