Kremlin ally Belarus calls for peace in Russia-Ukraine ‘scuffle’

Belarusian President and key Putin ally Aleksandr Lukashenko has called for peace between Russia and Ukraine as Kyiv’s incursion into the Kursk region of Russia enters its third week.
His plea, broadcast to Belarusian state media and published in part on his website, is set to be featured on Russian state-owned channel Rossia 1 on Sunday.
Referring to the two-and-a-half-year conflict which began with Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine and has left hundreds of thousands dead, Lukashenko said: “Let’s sit down at the negotiating table and end this scuffle.”
“Neither the Ukrainian people, nor the Russians, nor the Belarusians need it,” he continued in the interview. “It’s them in the West, who need [the war].  I cannot reveal these facts, they are absolutely classified. But sometimes they speak openly — high-ranking people. Saying, let them beat each other — Ukrainians, Russians — let everyone die in this cauldron.”
Under Lukashenko, who is a close ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin, Belarus has allowed Russian troops to attack Ukraine through its territory. Russia has also stationed nuclear weapons in Belarus, to the chagrin of the European Union.
His plea for peace comes as Ukraine’s most significant offensive action of the largely defensive war since Russia’s full-scale invasion enters its third week. Ukraine’s military now controls over 1,000 square kilometers of Russian territory in the Kursk region.
Against the backdrop of the Kursk operation, Lukashenko sent troops to the border with Ukraine recently to “stop possible Ukrainian breakthrough.” At the same time, he claims he has no hard feelings toward Ukraine.
“Ukrainians saw that. They constantly told us they didn’t need war with Belarus. We understand this and say we will not fight with you [Ukrainians],” Lukashenko said. According to him Belarus and Russia are not interested in expanding the contact line.
“The entire border is 1,200 kilometers. Now the northeastern district of the front is 1,000. Are we ready for more? No. And Kursk showed this,” Lukashenko added.
“We don’t want escalation, and we don’t want war against all of NATO. We don’t want this.”
Putin, however, said Monday that there was no point in talking to Kyiv after what it did in Kursk.
“What kind of negotiations can we talk about with people who indiscriminately attack the civilian population, civilian infrastructure, or try to create threats to nuclear power facilities? What can we even talk about with them?” Putin said during an emergency government meeting in Russia on Monday.
The Russian army has been attacking Ukrainian cities, killing civilians and holding Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant hostage for more than two years while demanding Ukraine cede territory to Russia if it wants peace talks to start.