Belarus President Says Ukraine's 'Gamble' Was Wrong, IAEA Responds to Russia

Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko has called on Ukraine to sit down at the negotiating table with Russia and end the ongoing conflict.

Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko. (Source: TASS)

In an interview with Russia's Rossiya TV channel on August 18, President Lukashenko said that Kiev's "bet" could end badly.

He also stated that, if necessary, Minsk and Moscow will turn the plan to protect the Union State's western borders into an offensive plan.

“There, we will have an advantage. Defense lines have been built, from Brest, Grodno... In fact, the borders with Lithuania and Poland have been closed on favorable conditions for us, we are also learning from the special military operation, knowing where to deploy (troops and weapons),” the Belarusian leader analyzed.

Arguing that the Ukrainian army attacked Kursk province because the country's leaders wanted to have a more favorable position in negotiations, but in such a situation, no one will negotiate with Kiev and therefore, "increasing the stakes" is a mistake, Mr. Lukashenko also called for: "Let's sit at the negotiating table and end this conflict."

Regarding the situation in Kursk, on August 18, Russia's Permanent Representative to International Organizations in Vienna (Austria) Mikhail Ulyanov announced that Director General of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Rafael Grossi will soon visit the Nuclear Power Plant in this province (KNPP) in the near future.

On social media, a Russian representative commented: “It seems that, given the alarming situation, this visit will take place soon.”

According to Mr. Ulyanov, the IAEA Director General responded to an earlier invitation from the head of the Russian Atomic Energy Agency (Rosatom) Alexei Likhachev.

In a phone call with Grossi, Likhachev stressed that the situation around the plant continues to deteriorate. On August 9, Russia also informed the IAEA about the situation at the KNPP in connection with Ukraine’s attempted attack on Kursk.

Source: https://baoquocte.vn/tong-thong-belarus-noi-van-cuoc-cua-ukraine-la-sai-lam-iaea-dap-loi-nga-283117.html