Minsk. June 3. INTERFAX-Western sanctions against Minsk and Moscow are elements of a hybrid war, Russian Foreign Intelligence Service director Sergei Naryshkin said on Thursday after a joint meeting with the leadership of the State Security Committee of Belarus.
"We assess the actions of Western countries as aggressive actions, actions that are taken outside the framework of international law... These are all elements of a hybrid war, aggressive actions, " Naryshkin said, answering a question about restrictions and sanctions against Russia and Belarus. He is quoted by the state agency BelTA.
The head of the SVR noted that the term "unfriendly steps" in this context is very soft.
"These aggressive actions are directed against the sovereignty of our countries, and we will not put up with this. We stand firmly in the position of protecting the universal values that we value, and, no matter what happens, we will protect and follow our right to sovereign development, to choose our own distinctive path of development," Naryshkin stressed.
Naryshkin also stressed that the Russian special services value partnership relations with their Belarusian colleagues. "We highly appreciate the level of interaction, trust in the relations between our two special services and value the partnership relations," he said.
According to the director of the SVR, the issues of ensuring the security of the two countries and the Union State as a whole are an important part of interstate cooperation. "The issue of protecting our independence and sovereignty is acute. And in this regard, the interaction of the special services is of great importance, " Naryshkin said.
