BELARUS President Alexander Lukashenko said on Tuesday that his country is willing to offer more assistance to close ally Russia in its war against Ukraine.

But in comments made during a state visit to Zimbabwe, Mr Lukashenko also said that Russia does not need “any help” for the time being.

Mr Lukashenko said: “However, if our Russian brothers need help, we are always ready to offer such assistance.”

The Belarus president was responding to a question on whether his country is under pressure to step up its support for Russia in its nearly year-long war against Ukraine.

Mr Lukashenko did not specify what that help would entail.

Russia staged part of its invasion of Ukraine from Belarus last February and has also been a launching pad for Russian missiles during the conflict. But Belarus hasn’t committed any of its troops to the war.

Russia and Belarus have engaged in joint military exercises on Belarusian territory this month.

Ukraine says it has maintained forces along its border with Belarus to fend off any potential invasion.

The United States says that it hasn’t witnessed any Russian troop movement in Belarus that would indicate an imminent attack.

But military analysts have said that if Belarus gets actively involved in the conflict, the additional troops could help Moscow cut off some key transportation corridors.

Mr Lukashenko arrived in Zimbabwe on Monday in a visit that seeks to cement economic and political ties between two countries.

The visit, according to Zimbabwe’s foreign ministry, is aimed at boosting “strong co-operation in political, economic, mining, agriculture and disaster risk management.”

Belarus has provided Zimbabwe with farm equipment such as tractors, combine harvesters and trucks under a deal worth tens of millions of dollars following Zimbabwe President Emmerson Mnangagwa’s visit to Minsk in 2019.

On Tuesday, the two countries signed several agreements ranging from agriculture to taxation and education.

Mr Lukashenko also offered to sell potash fertiliser to Zimbabwe, saying that despite Western sanctions imposed on Belarus his country “was able to sell big amounts of potash fertiliser.

“There are states ready to co-operate with Belarus,” he said.

Mr Lukashenko’s visit to Zimbabwe comes soon after Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov’s latest trip to Africa. 

Mr Lavrov visited South Africa, Eswatini, Angola and Eritrea last week, pulling on some of Moscow’s historic ties to the continent to rally support for Russia’s position and blame Western expansion for the war in Ukraine.