Belarus’ doting dictator has rapturously praised his pal Vladimir Putin, saying the Russian leader is “in better shape than ever” despite reports that his mental condition has worsened.
Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko painted a flattering image of his ally in an interview with Japanese TV channel TBS, which comes amid Russia’s ongoing invasion of Ukraine.
“We met with him not only as heads of state, we are on friendly terms,” Lukashenka said. “I am absolutely privy to every detail of it, to the best of my ability, both public and private.”
Putin’s army used Belarus as a springboard for a ground invasion of northern Ukraine, while troops crossed the Russian border in the country’s east.
Lukashenko has dismissed claims that Putin made a serious miscalculation in his attempt to occupy Ukraine as Russian troops are suffering heavy casualties and still facing strong resistance more than three weeks after the invasion began.
“Putin is in absolute shape, he is in better shape than ever … He is a perfectly sane, healthy person, physically healthy – he is an athlete.”
“As they say here, he will catch a cold at all our funerals.
Then-Russian Prime Minister Putin made headlines when he rode his horse shirtless in 2009. Alexey Druzhinin, Sputnik, Kremlin pool. Photo via AP.
Lukashenko, who calls himself “Europe’s last dictator,” also called the collapse of the Soviet Union a “tragedy” and said that Ukraine, a former Soviet territory, is “an integral part” of Russia.
“As long as the USSR existed, the world was multipolar, and one pole balanced the other,” he said. “Now the reason for what is happening in the world is unipolarity – the monopolization of our planet by the United States of America.”
The comments came after President Joe Biden called Putin a “war criminal”, a “pure thug” and a “murderous dictator”.
President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko is known for sticking to Russian Vladimir Putin. Tatyana Zenkovich, photo from the pool via AP, file
With mail wires