Vladimir Putin and Lukashenko to meet in Moscow on April 5-6, says Kremlin

Moscow: Belarus’ leader and one of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s closest allies, Alexander Lukashenko, will travel to Moscow on Wednesday for two days of talks with Putin, the Kremlin has said.

Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov said last week the two leaders would discuss Lukashenko’s recent call for an immediate ceasefire in Ukraine at an upcoming face-to-face meeting.

The two leaders will hold talks on “topical bilateral and international issues” on April 5, before a meeting of the Supreme Council of the Union State on April 6, the Kremlin announced on Tuesday.

Both Russia and Belarus are formally part of a Union State, a borderless union and alliance between the two former-Soviet countries, despite long-standing plans for closer integration of their economies having repeatedly failed.

Moscow happens to be Belarus’ key political and financial backer, while Lukashenko allowed Putin to use Belarus’ territory as a launchpad for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine last year.

In March, Putin said Russia would deploy tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus.

Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu said on Tuesday that Russia was boosting Belarus’ nuclear capabilities in response to Finland joining the NATO military alliance.

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