Can't rely on help

In a bombshell interview ahead of the weekend, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko called for negotiations between Russia and Ukraine aimed at stopping the war.

As one of Russian President Vladimir Putin's closest allies, Lukashenko has also allowed Russia to use Belarusian territory to attack Ukraine.

In a two-hour interview with a Russian radio station, he claimed that continuing the war in Ukraine is in the interests of “high-ranking people of American origin,” NTB wrote.

“He probably doesn’t say anything here that Putin doesn’t agree with,” says Arne Baard Dalhaug, a retired lieutenant general in the Norwegian armed forces and a former observer in the Russian-occupied areas of Ukraine’s Donbass.

– It must be cleaned.

Dalhaug believes it would be appropriate for both Lukashenko and Putin to cease hostilities in Ukraine — for different reasons.

– Russia must clean up its leadership system, and overcome the shock of Ukraine's offensive in Kursk, he tells Dagbladet.

For Lukashenko, the reasons may have to do with internal medicine, the former defense minister believes. The results of the 2020 election, when Lukashenko was re-elected president after what is described as widespread electoral fraud, sparked massive protests in Belarus.

In the end, members of the Russian security service FSB had to help calm the mood.

– In the process, Lukashenko has stumbled several times in clinging to power. And if there is unrest now, he cannot count on any help from Russia because of the war in Ukraine, says Dalhaug.

Attack amazingly

On August 6, Ukrainian forces launched an offensive into Russia's Kursk Oblast, in an attack that reportedly caught Putin and the Russian defense leadership by surprise.

Ukraine claims to have taken control of areas of about 1,000 square kilometres.

Meanwhile, the Russians are advancing on the Donetsk front in the east.

In the radio interview, which was also broadcast on the Belarusian president's website, Lukashenko also spoke about the use of nuclear weapons, as well as fears that Ukraine could attack Belarus.

However, Dalhaug rejects the idea that the Belarusian president has any influence on the use of Russian nuclear weapons, despite the fact that Russia has deployed several of these weapons in Belarus.

– It gives the impression that Belarus is involved in the decision-making process on the use of nuclear weapons, but of course it is not. Russia holds the keys here, and the nuclear weapons deployed in Belarus are under Russian control. This is an attempt to talk about your importance, the retired general believes.

The exploded bridge

Ukrainian forces destroyed a bridge over the Sigma River in Kursk on Friday, which Dalhaug believes could indicate they are preparing for a Russian counterattack.

– The Ukrainian army may have concluded that it cannot advance further than its current position. Then they want to blow up the bridges to prevent the Russian offensive forces from advancing, and to block the movement of supplies and military equipment, he said.