BELARUS NEWS AND ANALYSIS

DATE:

04/04/2008

Belarusian President Worries About Further NATO Expansion

President Alyaksandr Lukashenka said at a conference with senior military officials in Minsk on April 3 that Belarus must boost its defense capabilities in order to defend the union state with Russia, Belarusian state-run media reported. "In defending Belarus, we are defending the western border of the union state. The treaty with Russia is sacred," Lukashenka noted. He also expressed his concern at the possible expansion of NATO into the post-Soviet area. "We cannot simply sit back and say that everything around us is peaceful, that there are no problems around Belarus," Lukashenka said. "The NATO bloc has set its sights on former Soviet republics. I believe it is a matter of time before Ukraine and Georgia join NATO. No one is taking any heed of the position of Russia, Belarus, and other post-Soviet republics." JM

Source:

http://www.rferl.org/newsline/2008/04/3-cee/cee-040408.asp

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