On Monday afternoon he Belarusian ruler Alexander Lukashenko Kremlin head Vladimir Putin greeted at Minsk airport on a red carpet with bread and salt. This is shown by images from the Belarusian pro-government Telegram channel Pool Pervogo on Monday. The two former Soviet republics are close allies, with Lukashenko’s government wholly dependent on Moscow politically, economically and militarily following Western-imposed sanctions.
Is Russia urging its neighbors to join the war?
Although the two leaders’ contacts are regular and frequent, this is Putin’s first visit to Belarus in three years. Before the visit, Lukashenko had announced that the main focus would be on deepening economic cooperation. On the Moscow side, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov brushed aside speculation that Russia would urge its western neighbor to join the war against Ukraine.
In parallel with Putin’s visit, Russian troops are carrying out maneuvers in Belarus. The announcement was made by the Ministry of Defense in Moscow on Monday night, as reported by the Interfax news agency. Practiced at battalion level. Russian units are therefore part of a joint combat force with Belarus, which is being reorganized. According to earlier information from the Belarusian side, up to 9,000 Russian soldiers were supposed to belong to it.