Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, a close ally of Russian leader Vladimir Putin, stated in an interview on Wednesday that the deployment of foreign forces in the Ukraine conflict would inevitably lead to a dangerous escalation.

His remarks followed the U.S. announcement that it had detected evidence of North Korean troops in Russia, and South Korean legislators claimed that approximately 3,000 soldiers had been sent to Russia.

In separate interviews with the BBC and Russian state television, Lukashenko also emphasized that any use of the Russian nuclear weapons currently stationed in Belarus would require his personal approval.

Additionally, Lukashenko, who has held power since 1994, said he would consider running for another term in the upcoming presidential election in January if encouraged to do so by his supporters.

The Belarusian leader dismissed reports of North Korean troops being deployed alongside Russian forces in the ongoing war in Ukraine, now over two and a half years old.

"That’s nonsense," Lukashenko told the BBC during the BRICS summit. "Knowing Putin's character, he would never try to convince another country to send its military to support Russia’s special operation in Ukraine."

Introducing foreign forces, according to Lukashenko, "would escalate the conflict if troops from any country, including Belarus, were placed on the front lines." He warned that such involvement would likely lead Ukraine's allies to accuse Russia of foreign intervention, potentially prompting NATO to deploy troops in Ukraine.

On Monday, the Kremlin avoided directly addressing whether North Korean troops were fighting in Ukraine, but affirmed that it had the sovereign right to strengthen its ties with Pyongyang.

Lukashenko assured the BBC that Putin would "never use the nuclear weapons stationed in Belarus without my consent." He added that he was prepared to authorize their use if necessary: "I’m fully ready to use them—but only if a single foreign soldier steps into Belarus. We have no intention of attacking anyone."

Nuclear weapons had been removed from Belarus following the collapse of the Soviet Union, but Russian tactical missiles were redeployed in the country by mutual agreement starting in June 2023.

Speaking to Russia’s Rossiya-1 television, Lukashenko reiterated his openness to another term in office, saying, "If my supporters believe it must happen, I will run."

In 2020, Lukashenko won a sixth term in an election widely condemned in the West as fraudulent. Massive protests erupted in response, but they were swiftly suppressed by a security crackdown, with Putin backing Lukashenko throughout the crisis.