Russian President Vladimir Putin arrived in Minsk on Monday to discuss the issues of security in the region and joint measures to respond to challenges with his Belarusian counterpart.
Lukashenko personally met Putin at the airport in Minsk, the Pul Pervogo Telegram channel reported, adding that the leaders went to the residence of the Belarusian president – the Independence Palace – to hold a meeting, Sputnik reported.
The talks will reportedly start in a wide format, with the participation of members of the governments of the two countries, heads of ministries and departments. The presidents will then continue their personal meeting, after which they are expected to make statements and answer questions from reporters.
Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu also arrived in Minsk to participate in the meeting between the presidents of Russia and Belarus, a Sputnik correspondent reported.
The Russian delegation also includes Ambassador to Belarus Boris Gryzlov, Kremlin aide Yury Ushakov, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov, Deputy Prime Minister Alexei Overchuk, Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov, Energy Minister Nikolai Shulginov, and Director of Federal Service for Military-Technical Cooperation Dmitry Shugayev.
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According to a report, Belarusian ruler Alexander Lukashenko received Russian President Vladimir Putin at the Minsk airport on the red carpet with the traditional welcoming gift of bread and salt.
Pictures from the pro-government Belarusian Telegram channel Pool One (Pul Pervogo) showed the welcome at the airport on Monday.
The two former Soviet republics are close allies, with Lukashenko’s government completely dependent on Moscow politically, economically and militarily following sanctions imposed by the West.
While contacts between the two leaders are frequent, this is Putin’s first visit to Belarus in three years.
Before the visit, Lukashenko had announced that it would primarily be about deepening economic cooperation. From Moscow’s side, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov rejected speculation that Russia would press its western neighbour to go to war against Ukraine.
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