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Lukashenka: NATO operation in Libya was act of vandalism of 21st century

NATO's military operation in Libya was an act of vandalism of the 21st century, Alyaksandr Lukashenka told reporters on Friday while staying in the Hrodna region.

"How do we view the actions of the NATO forces in Libya? As a violation of the mandate from the UN Security Council," the Belarusian leader said. “I'm not exaggerating the role of this headless and dumb Security Council and the role of the United Nations, which has already turned into some screen. Look: Iraq, Afghanistan, the entire Arab arc. Where is this UN? Why hadn't it prevented all this?"

What is more, the United Nations and the Security Council in particular even played along with the aggressors, Mr. Lukashenka said.

Many, including Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov, have pointed out that NATO violated its mandate, he noted.

"An act of aggression was perpetrated, the leadership of the country was killed, not only Muammar al-Qadhafi," Mr. Lukashenka said. "Moreover, how was he killed? It's one thing if they had shot him dead. He would have been killed in combat. But they used NATO's special task units to capture the head of state. Don't think that boys caught him, the head of state. You know how he was guarded. They mocked and abused him, shot at him, violated him after he was wounded, twisted and broke his arms and then tortured him to death. [They acted] worse than the Nazis in their days."

"God forbid that such policies and actions prevail on our planet," Mr. Lukashenka said. "They would spell disaster for everyone."

In Tunisia and Egypt, for example, radical Islamists are rapidly gaining strength, he said. "Libya will be even worse off, as it has vast natural resources," he predicted. "Everyone has already rushed there. I'm not even speaking about those who hold up to $150 billion worth of Libyan money today: the USA, Italy, France and Germany. These countries are very interested to appropriate this wealth. There is worse to come."

Forces undesirable to the West are coming to power in the Arab countries that have had revolutions, Mr. Lukashenka noted. "They [the West] will no longer be able to control those countries," he said. "What they were fighting for tripped them up.” These developments reveal the true face of “our so-called teachers of democracy," Mr. Lukashenka said, "Do you need such democracy?" // BelaPAN