"This is not an invasion": Lukashenko says Ukraine itself caused war with Russia

Belta reports.

According to Lukashenko, there was no Russian invasion, and Ukraine allegedly provoked the outbreak of war by its own actions.

"You say it's an invasion. I think it's not an invasion. This is not an invasion. The Ukrainian government itself provoked this 'operation' by its actions. Then it was necessary to agree with Russia to avoid this war. But everything was aimed, starting with the Minsk agreements, to unleash a war. There was no invasion," Lukashenko reiterated during a press conference for Belarusian and foreign journalists in Minsk.

He added that he believes the Russian military in Ukraine is protecting the interests of Russia and "Russian people."  

"I believe it is the protection of the interests of Russia and those people who lived there - Russian people," Lukashenko said.

• On February 16, Alexander Lukashenko said that he would enter the war against Ukraine only in case of aggression against his country.