Belarus and USA are prepared to exchange military attaches
Minsk and Washington have been discussing the accreditation of military attachés at the embassies of the two countries. This was stated by Deputy assistant Secretary of defense Michael carpenter met with reporters in Minsk.
Michael carpenter, photo by press service of US Embassy
At the time of the press conference the representative of the Pentagon held a meeting in the Ministry of defense, tomorrow he will be meeting with Alyaksandr Lukashenka.
According to carpenter, to accredit military attaches at the embassies was the proposal of the American side. And now comes the initial stage of discussion of this decision.
The Belarusian side “is in principle favourable to the embodiment of this step in life,” noted carpenter and expressed hope that the issue will be resolved in the coming months, writes TUT.BY.
We also discussed possible future steps that can be taken to ensure greater transparency in our military relationship.
Other topics of the visit was regional security issues, particularly the conflict in Ukraine. The representative of the Pentagon stated that the United States appreciates the role that Belarus has played as a neutral place for negotiations between Russia and Ukraine.
He called Minsk agreement, a roadmap for a diplomatic solution to the conflict, but added that they are routinely violated today.
The Pentagon spokesman also commented on the plans for placement of the airbase in Belarus. According to him, Belarus is a sovereign country and will decide whether to place a military base on its territory.
— However, it would be regarded as destabilizing and an optional step. So it will be judged by our NATO allies in the region, as it will evaluate and we.
According to carpenter, today there is no threat to Belarus from the countries of the West and NATO in particular. The Alliance’s activities in the region, said the American official, is purely defensive and proportionate in response to the aggressive policy of Russia.
He noted some progress in the efforts of the Belarusian authorities to democratize. Carpenter clarified that we are talking about the release of political prisoners and elections held without violence. However, there are still expectations of greater freedom of Association and freedom of expression, said the Pentagon official.
Deputy assistant Secretary of defense Michael carpenter is on an official visit in Minsk on 28-30 March. Said this yesterday, the U.S. Embassy.
