Putin and Lukashenko meet for the first time since the Wagner Movement

Russian President Vladimir Putin met with his close ally, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, for the first time since Lukashenko mediated an agreement that ended the Wagner Group's rebellion in Russia last month.

On Sunday, Lukashenko's media apparatus published a video showing the two presidents arriving at the Constantine Palace in St. Petersburg for their scheduled talks.

Putin announced that he extended the talks with his Belarusian counterpart, Alexander Lukashenko, Moscow's staunch ally, stating, "I have changed some of my plans (...) We will dedicate a day and a half to these talks," as reported by the TASS news agency.

The two leaders are meeting in Saint Petersburg to discuss "strategic partnership and alliance" between Moscow and Minsk, according to a statement released by the Kremlin on Friday.

On Thursday, Minsk announced that Russian Wagner Group fighters, who were forced to leave their country for Belarus, a Russian ally, after their rebellion against the Russian military leadership in late July/June, are training with the Belarusian special forces.

On Sunday, Lukashenko confirmed that elements of the Wagner Group would remain in central Belarus.

Wagner fighters played a significant role in the Russian offensive in Ukraine, especially on the frontlines of the brutal battle for control of Bakhmut (eastern Ukraine). Moscow claimed the city fell to its forces in May after months of a siege that devastated the city.

On June 24th, at the height of the conflict with the Russian General Staff, Wagner fighters occupied an army headquarters in Rostov-on-Don in southern Russia for hours and advanced hundreds of kilometers towards Moscow in a rebellion that shook the Russian authorities.

Their rebellion ended on the evening of June 24th with an agreement that stipulated the departure of Wagner's leader, Yevgeny Prigozhin, to Belarus. Wagner fighters were offered the option to join the regular forces, return to civilian life, or leave with their leader to Belarus.



AFP