Belarusian opposition was ready to stage armed coup amid Russia crisis – Lukashenko
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.”
The Wagner Group, which has fought in the Ukraine conflict and was instrumental to the Russian capture of the strategic city of Artyomovsk (Bakhmut) in May, launched its mutiny late on Friday. The head of the PMC, Evgeny Prigozhin, said he had ordered the insurrection because the Russian Defense Ministry “wanted to disband Wagner.” The rebel troops seized control of a Russian military headquarters in the city of Rostov-on-Don and sent an armed convoy towards Moscow.
Lukashenko reportedly played a key role in resolving the crisis as he negotiated with Prigozhin throughout Saturday. According to Minsk, the talks took place in close coordination with Russian President Vladimir Putin. The Wagner chief announced on Saturday evening that his men would be returning to their field camps.
The Kremlin said Prigozhin would leave Russia and go to Belarus under the terms of the agreement. Wagner troops who participated in the mutiny will also avoid prosecution, it added. The Federal Security Service (FSB) confirmed on Tuesday that the criminal case against Wagner and Prigozhin had been dropped. According to Putin, Wagner troops have the choice of signing a contract with Russia’s Defense Ministry and other security agencies, returning home, or moving to Belarus.
“One shouldn’t make a hero out of me,” Lukashenko said about his contribution. “There can be no heroes in this case.”
