The Belarusian army was put on full combat alert as the Wagner PMC launched its mutiny in the neighboring country, the president has said
Belarus’ President Alexander Lukashenko © AFP / Natalia Kolesnikova
The opposition in Belarus was prepared to stage an armed coup amid the revolt by the Wagner private military company in Russia, but was prevented from fulfilling its plans, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko has claimed, according to the state-run BelTa news agency.
Lukashenko said on Tuesday that his opponents had started “buzzing with activity” when Wagner launched its mutiny in the neighboring country last week. “But it was a false start,” he added.
The opposition “has already published its appeals and plans… that they are also ready to implement the scenario of an armed rebellion [in Belarus],” the president claimed. “They’re trying to demonstrate at least some results to their curators [abroad].”
“When the events in Russia were happening, I gave all the orders to put the army on full combat alert,” Lukashenko said, adding that the same was true for the police and the special forces.
Speaking about his reaction to the mutiny by the Wagner PMC, the Belarusian leader said that “it was painful to watch the events that took place in southern Russia. And not only for me. Many of our [Belarusian] citizens took them to heart because we have a single Fatherland.”
