Putin discussed mercenaries and elections with Lukashenko

On Friday, August 7, two days before the presidential elections in Belarus, for the first time since the detention of 33 Russian citizens on the territory of the republic on July 29, a telephone conversation took place between Vladimir Putin and Alexander Lukashenko. Key topics of discussion are detention and elections.

The Kremlin did not specify on whose initiative the conversation took place, but the Belarusian edition of Belta indicates that Lukashenka received a call from the Russian leader.

The Russian report says that the leaders exchanged views in connection with the detention of Russian citizens and expressed confidence that "the situation that has arisen will be resolved in the spirit of mutual understanding characteristic of cooperation between the two countries."

“The Russian side is interested in maintaining a stable internal political situation in Belarus and holding the upcoming presidential elections in a calm atmosphere,” the Kremlin website says.

Belta writes that the parties emphasized the desire to “together in the most serious way to understand this situation”, to carefully study every available fact, “to establish the true causes of the current situation, find the perpetrators and bring them to justice.”

The Belarusian agency claims that Putin, speaking about the elections, noted the need to “confront negative trends and actions of third forces,” which could lead to a deterioration in relations between the countries.

• The day before, Lukashenka gave an interview to Ukrainian journalist Dmitry Gordon, full of radical statements about Russia, Crimea and Putin personally. Among other things, he stated that he was fully aware of the activities of the mercenaries, and that they were given orders from Russia.
• On the morning of August 7, Komsomolskaya Pravda published an article stating that Ukrainian special services allegedly attracted Russian mercenaries to Belarus, and they “set them up” for the Belarusian authorities.