Фото: пресс-служба Лукашенко
Alyaksandr Lukashenka, during a meeting with Union State Secretary of State Sergei Glazyev, said that he had not only decided to dispel what he called “conspiracy theories” surrounding his conversation with Russian President Vladimir Putin and an alleged “plot” against Minsk, but also to convey a public proposal to US President Donald Trump regarding Venezuela.
Lukashenka said he considers the detention of Nicolas Maduro and his removal to the United States by the American military to have been a mistake. He added that he is now ready to offer Trump a way to exit the situation around Venezuela.
“I have told many, many Russians, and if you join in, we can advise many on how to behave toward this rabid West, the main part of which is the United States of America. I also constantly tell them, frankly, where they are wrong. They were wrong with Maduro — they committed a foolish act. I warned them. At the suggestion of the Americans (not on my own initiative — they asked me), I was drawn into this problem. And I offered them an ideal option. An ideal option! But they went their own way. Donald wanted somehow to please the military,” Lukashenka said.
In his view, the seizure of Maduro was ill-considered.
“So what did they do? You always have to think: you take a step — and what comes next? So what now? What charge of drug trafficking can they pin on Maduro? What can he be accused of? Prove that he led some cartel. And as for the fact that the whole world trades in drugs — that is true.
And if we are already talking about drugs, I also recently told the Americans, in discussions with them, that the way Europe behaves is a nightmare. They send us synthetic drugs — more to Russia, of course, via us. And recently we seized an entire vehicle, more than a tonne, I think, of drugs that one vehicle was carrying, hidden. So the whole world is involved in this. This must be fought. Perhaps the way it is done in Belarus, rather than accusing Maduro.
As it turned out, it was not about Maduro. It was about oil. And this issue could have been resolved calmly, calmly, without all this. Especially since the oil that Venezuela produces — we worked there — is heavy oil, sulphurous oil, thick oil, and the only refining capacity for it is in the United States of America. Could this issue not have been resolved? It could have. Instead, they carried out some operation, grabbed a man. And then what? What did they show the whole world? But the main thing is — what comes next?” Lukashenka said.
At the same time, he said he has an idea of how to get out of the situation.
“Therefore, this is another topic for my discussion with the leadership of the United States of America. I have a proposal for a way out of this situation. And if they want to exit it with dignity and in a beautiful way, we are ready to work with Donald in this regard. He is a pragmatic person. So am I. Therefore, I think we will discuss this problem. I do not want to say that I am some chief adviser or that I can solve some problem for him. No. But I can express my point of view,” Lukashenka continued.
He also went on to give a more detailed assessment of Donald Trump’s policy, in particular his proclaimed return to the Monroe Doctrine.
“As for the United States of America. The Monroe Doctrine… Well, Sergei Yuryevich, we are experienced people. When was that? It can be modernised somehow. But if we are to live in the 19th or 18th century, then tomorrow we really will have to fight Europe. But we do not set such goals for ourselves. The same applies to the United States of America,” he said.
Lukashenka also commented on Donald Trump’s attempt to obtain Greenland.
“We understand their concerns about Greenland. Especially since they could have invested heavily in Greenland. But in this way — what did it cause? Rejection. Even within the United States of America, the majority of the population says: ‘No, we do not want this.’ Although, you know, these are heroic people in the US, you know how this nation was formed, and so on. Not ordinary people came there from Europe. These are people focused on struggle, and so on. And they said: ‘No, this is not the way.’ They clashed with Europe, not to mention Denmark and so on. I see that Donald stepped back,” he said.
Overall, Lukashenka said there is no need to worry about Trump’s policy.
“There is no need to get worked up about his policy. He said it straight away: peace through strength. And the tactic is this: press, then retreat. This is his tactic. A strong country, a powerful one, a world leader. That is his tactic. And there is no need to attack him or pile on here. I am not defending him, but this is indeed the case. This is his tactic. We feel it very well in negotiations with the United States of America. And we manage in these negotiations to resolve our own issues. But under no circumstances are we resolving these issues at the expense of our brotherly and close Russia,” he stressed.