Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko has publicly defended Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro, portraying him as a resilient political leader and dismissing speculation about any plans for Maduro to leave Venezuela under pressure from the United States.
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In an interview with the US outlet Newsmax, published on Monday, Lukashenko said Maduro has never been an adversary of Belarus and rejected rumors suggesting the Venezuelan president could relocate to Belarus. “Maduro never has been our enemy or adversary. Never,” Lukashenko said. “If he wanted to come to Belarus, our doors would always be open to him. But honestly, we have never talked about that.”
Lukashenko stressed that Maduro would not abandon his responsibilities, describing him as a determined leader comparable to the late Venezuelan president Hugo Chávez. “Maduro is not the kind of man who would leave everything and run away,” he said. “He is a strong person, like Hugo Chávez. He is a strong, decent and sensible man, someone you can talk to and reach agreements with.”
Belarus’ Lukashenko says Venezuelan President Maduro is welcome to move to Belarus https://t.co/7QSYahkYJF https://t.co/7QSYahkYJF
— Reuters (@Reuters) December 16, 2025
Addressing reports about a possible resignation or relocation, the Belarusian president said such scenarios had never been discussed directly with Maduro. “We have never discussed this topic with Maduro,” Lukashenko stated. “To be honest, we have talked more about Venezuela with the Americans than with Maduro about his resignation or any actions related to it. He is a heroic man.”
Lukashenko also argued that tensions involving the United States could be resolved through peaceful means and said he expects to discuss the issue with US President Donald Trump in the future. “I would tell him many interesting things. A war would lead to nothing,” he said. He warned that a military confrontation with Venezuela would amount to “a second Vietnam” and questioned whether such a conflict would be in Washington’s interest. According to Lukashenko, any attack would only strengthen domestic support for Maduro.
In the same interview, Lukashenko rejected US claims of a sharp increase in drug trafficking originating from Venezuela and criticized Washington’s refusal to recognize Venezuelan elections. He said the elections “were held for Venezuelans, not for Americans,” while also questioning the legitimacy of the US electoral process, referring to allegations of fraud in the 2020 presidential election.
His comments come amid an expanded US military presence in the Caribbean in recent weeks, described as the largest deployment in the region in decades and officially justified as part of anti-narcotics operations. Since September, US forces have destroyed more than twenty vessels allegedly carrying drugs in the Caribbean and the Pacific, killing more than 87 crew members in what Venezuelan authorities have described as extrajudicial actions.
Caracas has characterized US military movements near its coastline as an armed aggression aimed at imposing regime change and seizing the country’s strategic resources.
From teleSUR English via This RSS Feed.