Фото: Пул первого
Alyaksandr Lukashenka said he presented his own vision for ending the war with Iran during talks with US President’s Special Envoy John Coale. He made the remarks while commenting on the meeting.
“I proposed to them my vision of how the war in Iran should end — the way I see it. I do not want to discuss it publicly. I offered them another option,” he said.
He also said that Coale had previously served as a lawyer for relatives of one of the US citizens killed in Iran. In 1979, during the Islamic Revolution, the US embassy in Tehran was seized and its staff taken hostage. A military rescue attempt failed, and the hostages were released only in 1981.
“They do not emphasise this much. They talk about nuclear weapons and other things. But in their minds — especially in American society — are those people who died back then. And this John was a lawyer for the victims’ families. He told me this personally. So, he says, this is something that stays with him,” Lukashenka said.
According to him, Belarus finds itself in a difficult position, as the current conflict involves actors he considers allies on different sides.
“On the one hand, Iran — seemingly our allies. They did not listen to me when I spoke to them before the war, long before it began. The Americans know this. Then there are the Emirates, Qatar, especially Oman — we are now focusing on them. Saudi Arabia as well — we are in talks. So, on one side there are people close to us, and on the other side also our people. God willing, this should end. We have only one principle: it must end. Because our people are on both sides. Everyone is suffering,” he said.