Фото: пресс-служба Лукашенко
Alyaksandr Lukashenka, speaking at today’s ceremony awarding decorations and military ranks held in connection with February 23, promised the military another inspection and an exam.
“The situation is not simple. You feel it. I do so even more, receiving extensive information about the situation around our country. This is what dictates my extremely tough demand to strengthen the security and defence of our Motherland. I want you to understand that in the near future all people in uniform will be checked and will pass an exam for professional suitability. We have sufficient forces and resources for this. Please take this as a given,” he said.
It should be recalled that two inspections are currently underway in the armed forces. One was initiated by Lukashenka bypassing the Ministry of Defence, while the other is being carried out by the ministry under its own plan. Lukashenka had already spoken about an exam in physical fitness during a visit to a training ground, where he was briefed on the progress of the inspection he initiated.
According to Lukashenka, the war in Ukraine has revealed certain shortcomings, and he does not want them to exist in the Belarusian army.
“I do not want these shortcomings to be characteristic of our army. A special attitude and special demands are directed at officers,” he said.
“I am a down-to-earth person who has served quite a lot in the army, and I understand: people are different, the new generation — you know what it is like. And you know well the quality of the people who come into the Armed Forces. This will also be the case in war. This is how it is on that front next to us. People are very different. But those who know how, who are physically strong (those who fought in Ukraine warned us about this), they will survive. Those who are careless, including officers, will die in the first hours. Therefore, physical training and the weapons that will be issued to you are the main things for preserving your life, and likewise our country,” he continued.
Lukashenka said he has an instinctive sense that there are shortcomings in the training of officers.
“You must master these weapons. And this all depends on you — the officers. As I said, people are different. Someone will be good at handling weapons and physically prepared. Someone not so much. But if the officer is prepared, the platoon, company, battalion, division, brigade will always, on the whole, accomplish the task set before them. You understand what this is about. Therefore, we need to pay the most serious attention to the training of officers. I feel instinctively that we are not doing enough precisely there. That is why somewhere we already see, during the inspection, shortcomings among those we are checking. But we will talk about this later,” he said.
It should be noted that in July last year the Security Council, on Lukashenka’s instruction, already conducted a physical fitness inspection of the senior officer corps. Generals and colonels holding general-level positions from 11 security agencies took part. At that time, Security Council State Secretary Alyaksandr Valfovich reported that 70 percent of the assessments were excellent and 30 percent good. There were no unsatisfactory or satisfactory marks. The generals completed a 500-metre run, a 100-metre swim, pull-ups, and a comprehensive strength exercise.