MINSK. Nov 13 (Interfax) - At a meeting with Belarusian Defense Minister Andrei Ravkov in Minsk on Friday, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko approved a new plan to deploy a regional group of Belarusian and Russian troops before its consideration at a meeting of the Supreme State Council of the Union State.
In Lukashenko's view, the document must take into account changes in the situation around Belarus.
"Everyone is aware of what is happening in Ukraine. We cannot not take this into account," Lukashenko said, according to the BelTA state news agency. He was referring, in particular, to the influx of illegal migrants and arms trafficking from the neighboring state.
The head of state also believes that the plan needs to be considered in the context of the relationships across the post-Soviet space where three large blocs are functioning - the CIS, the Eurasian Economic Union and the Union State.
Lukashenko stressed that the future plan to deploy the regional group of Belarusian and Russian troops must take into account the events taking place near the country's western borders.
"We are aware of the expansion of the U.S. missile defense system in the West, we are also aware of certain designs on nuclear weapons. We will have to take all this into account," Lukashenko said.
For his part, Ravkov told the president that the plan reflects changes in the outside situation to the fullest possible extent.
The new five-year plan to deploy a regional group of Belarusian and Russian troops must be approved at a meeting of the Supreme State Council of the Union State. It is expected that the document will come into effect in January 2016.