Belarus will not join invasion: Lukashenko

The leader of Belarus, Alexander Lukashenko, has told state media that his forces will not join Russian troops in the invasion of Ukraine.

Lukashenko, who is a close ally of Vladimir Putin, said that the “Belarusian army isn’t taking part in military action, and never did”.

“We can prove this to anyone. More than that, the Russian leadership never raised this issue with us - our involvement in the armed conflict. And we don’t intend to take part in this special operation in Ukraine in the future. There is no need for this.”

Fears had been raised on Monday that Lukashenko was preparing to send a military force to join in the attack on Kyiv.

A spokesperson for the US State Department, Ned Price, said on Monday that Russia had “make a mockery” of Belarus’ sovereignty by launching its invasion of Ukraine from Belarusian territory._BBC