Russian president makes two-day visit to Belarus to discuss security, tactical nuclear weapons exercises

9:29 a.m. todayAuthor: Asia-Plus

Russian President Vladimir Putin arrived in Belarus on May 23 for a two-day visit as part of several foreign tours to launch his fifth term.

Alexander Lukashenko greeted him on the tarmac, then the two sat down for a “short conversation” at the airport, the Kremlin reported. Lukashenko reportedly promised to discuss “security issues at the forefront, and tomorrow we will discuss economic issues with our government colleagues.”

The Belarusian president stressed that he also had “a very interesting proposal” regarding the Caucasus region, which he discussed “very seriously” during a visit to Azerbaijan.

For his part, Putin said that during his visit to China earlier this month, Chinese President Xi Jinping “remembered” Lukashenko with “a kind word.”

“I had a big meeting with members of the government and we talked about my visit to you… We will discuss all this today and tomorrow, including security issues, to which you constantly pay great attention …Of course we will also talk about the exercises – the second phase of the exercises,” he said.

Russia announced on May 21 the start of military exercises aimed at training the use of nuclear weapons. Belarus announced the same type of exercises on May 8. Neither Moscow nor Minsk have specified the end date of the exercises.

This was Putin's second foreign trip during his new term. Putin visited China on May 16-17. Earlier on May 23, Putin received Bahrain's King Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa at the Kremlin.

In Belarus, Putin reportedly held talks with his Belarusian counterpart Alexander Lukashenko.

BelTA reports that Russian President Vladimir Putin explained the reason for choosing Belarus as one of his first foreign visits after taking office as president, while speaking to the media following the talks with his Belarusian counterpart Alexander Lukashenko in Minsk on May 24.

“This trip is one of the first foreign visits after the President takes office, after the formation of the new Government of the Russian Federation. By making this visit, I would like to underline the importance that Russia attaches to fraternal ties with our closest neighbor, a reliable ally and a true strategic partner,” explained Vladimir Putin.

According to him, the talks were very productive, with the participation of deputy prime ministers and ministers to discuss all key issues of Belarusian-Russian cooperation in the fields of economy, security and defense, culture and humanitarian work.

Vladimir Putin stressed that trade between the two countries continues to grow year after year. “Russia, as the main economic partner of Belarus, accounts for approximately 60% of Belarusian foreign trade. Last year, mutual trade increased by more than 5.0% to a record high of $46.5 billion,” the Russian leader said. According to him, although this figure is calculated in US dollars, more than 90% of all payments in Russian-Belarusian trade transactions are made in national currency. “We can say that mutual trade and investments are protected from the influence of third countries and negative trends in global currency markets,” Vladimir Putin said confidently.