Belarusian Defence Ministry Denies Resignation of Chief of General Staff

MINSK (Sputnik) - Ukrainian reports alleging that Belarusian Chief of General Staff Viktor Gulevich has stepped down because of unwillingness to fight in Ukraine are fake news, the Belarusian defence ministry said on Sunday.

"The Belarusian defence ministry was informed of the stupidest fake news of the season produced by Ukrainian fake-makers," the ministry said on Telegram. "This time they began to calm themselves with the myth they invented about the alleged ‘mass refusal to participate in hostilities’ and the resignation of the Chief of General Staff of the armed forces of Belarus."

Under Belarusian law, the chief of general staff is supposed to request resignation not from the defence minister but from the Commander-in-Chief of armed forces, which is the president, the ministry explained.

The ministry also stressed that Belarusian troops are not engaged in any activities outside of Belarus, adding that "all military units and bases in Belarus are 100% complete."

"Thirdly, well, if you dare to produce fakes of this scale, then at least find a signature that is more similar to the authentic signature of the chief of general staff," the ministry said.

Earlier in the day, social media disseminated a letter of resignation allegedly signed by Gulevich and addressed to Belarusian Defence Minister Viktor Khrenin.

On February 24, Russia began a special operation to demilitarize and "denazify" Ukraine, responding to calls for help from the Donetsk and Lugansk people's republics in countering the aggression of Ukrainian troops. The Russian Defence Ministry said the special operation is targeting Ukrainian military infrastructure only and the civilian population is not in danger. Moscow has repeatedly stressed that it has no plans to occupy Ukraine.