Zmitser Bandarenka: “Sikorski and Usackas are sponsors of Russia-Lukashenka manoeuvres”

The coordinator of the civil campaign “European Belarus” calls on the Belarusians to protest against bringing Russian troops to our country.

“It’s not just military exercises of the two neighbouring armies. For the first time in many years the huge military grouping of the country, that had occupied the Belarusian land for more than 200 years and which new rulers insist that the Belarusians should reject independence and join the empire on the rights of seven regions, enters the country. Those, who are acquainted with history of Russia, know that soldiers of this country like to enter other countries but don’t like to leave them,” Zmitser Bandarenka says.

The politician thinks these exercises mean a total failure of the policy of western “liberal politicians” who stated “let Lukashenka be a dictator, but we’ll separate Belarus from Russia.”

“In fact, initiators of this approach are foreign ministers of Poland and Lithuania Sikorski and Usackas, who lobbied many-billion loans by IMF and European banks for the Belarusian dictator and became the main sponsors of the Russia-Lukashenka manoeuvres. The strategy of “separating from Russia” has led to bringing Russian troops to Brest and Hrodna. The situation us very difficult, but it doesn’t free us, Belarusians, from the responsibility to defend our country. The only possibility in this situation and these conditions is street protests,” the coordinator of “European Belarus” believes.

On September 9, echelons of Russian troops come in Belarus to take part in strategic military exercises Zapad-2009. The Belarusian land has never met such amount of Russian soldiers – 6000 out of 12500 participants of the training are the Russians.

Carrying out such large-scale military exercises contradicts the Constitution of Belarus. The Consittution says Belarus is a neutral state, so it can’t join any military organizations and carry out military exercises on the territory if foreign armies take part in them.