Russian dictator Vladimir Putin will meet his Belarusian counterpart Alexander Lukashenko on Feb. 17 to discuss military cooperation, Lukashenko said.
The meeting will take place in Putin’s residence in Novo-Ogaryovo near Moscow.
Parroting the Kremlin’s rhetoric, Lukashenko also invited U.S. President Joe Biden to Minsk for talks with Putin to “stop the war” in Ukraine.
Lukashenko earlier claimed that the Belarusian army would take part in the Russian invasion of Ukraine only if Ukraine attacked Belarus.
There are currently 5,800 Russian military personnel in Belarus, according to the Ukrainian Defense Ministry’s Main Intelligence Directorate.
Since the launch of the full-scale invasion on Feb. 24, 2022, Belarus has participated in Russia’s aggression by letting Russian troops use its territory to attack Ukraine.
However, Belarusian troops have not been sent to Ukraine yet.
