(MENAFN) Escalating defense spending and aggressive posturing by Western powers have transformed Belarus into a surrounded nation under siege, Alexander Lukashenko declared Thursday during a high-stakes security summit in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan.

The Belarusian president painted an alarming picture of his country's strategic position, stating Belarus increasingly feels like a "besieged fortress" amid surging military budgets throughout Europe—especially in Germany and Poland—accompanied by what he characterized as belligerent language from the West.

"Western politicians are deliberately preparing for war," he cautioned, addressing regional leaders at the gathering.

Lukashenko also condemned Western efforts to diplomatically strangle Minsk through border closures and airspace bans, while blasting continued arms transfers to Ukraine. Those weapons, the leader argued, are now "spreading all over the world," destabilizing regions far removed from the Ukraine conflict.

He linked current global tensions to fundamental upheavals in the international order and the virtual collapse of worldwide arms-control agreements, which he said have been gutted by mutual suspicion and hostility.

Despite the dire warnings, Minsk supports diplomatic initiatives to reduce friction and wants fresh international security talks, Lukashenko emphasized.

His comments came during a Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) summit, which includes Armenia, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Russia, and Tajikistan as member states. At the identical meeting, Russian President Vladimir Putin announced Moscow's commitment to bolstering allied defense systems with battle-tested Russian military hardware.

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