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Belarus' strongman dictator Alexander Lukashenko has seemingly undermined Russia's claims that Ukraine was behind the deadly Moscow massacre, after revealing the four terrorists tried fleeing to Belarus, not Ukraine.

Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, a longtime ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin, signed a law on Wednesday that grants him lifelong immunity from criminal prosecution. -snip- the law signed by Lukashenko on Wednesday states that once a president leaves office, they "cannot be held accountable for actions committed in connection with exercising his presidential powers." The law also gives former presidents and their families lifelong protection, along with medical care, life and health insurance. AP also said that former presidents will now also receive a lifelong seat in the upper house of parliament upon resigning.

Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko has reportedly kicked the Wagner PMC out of Belarus, after refusing to finance the Russian mercenaries. (snip) But reports have now emerged suggesting Lukashenko has refused to finance their stay in the country and the mercenaries are being 'bussed' back to Russia for a “vacation.” According to the VChK-OGPU Telegram channel, operations to remove all Wagner Group men began earlier in the month, with a second phase to remove the rest going into effect this weekend. Wagner’s services don’t come cheap. Putin recently admitted that the Kremlin has spent around $1bn on the private military company...

Lukashenka agreed with Prigozhin to stop military convoys According to the press service of the President of Belarus, Alexander Lukashenko, having enlisted the support of Vladimir Putin, spent the whole day negotiating with the head of Wagner PMC Yevgeny Prigozhin. As a result, the parties came to a mutually beneficial agreement, after which the movement of armed persons of the Wagner company on Russian territory was stopped. https://twitter.com/djuric_zlatko/status/1672655608506466306

Japan was the first country to break its silence after the full-scale invasion of Ukraine last year. Tokyo said of the Kuril Islands that it was “completely unacceptable that the Northern Territories have yet to be returned since the Soviet Union’s illegal occupation of them 77 years ago”. That annexation saw the expulsion of Japanese people from the southern islands, and since then, the countries have failed to reach a compromise. Talks broke down when Putin showed he was not willing to share lands but only to gain new ones. Then China started drawing maps marking part of Siberia and...

Belarus dictator Alexander Lukashenko has been taken seriously ill for the second time this month in Moscow, reports say. The 68-year-old was said to have been hospitalised in a 'critical' condition after collapsing during a trip to meet close ally Vladimir Putin. He was seen struggling to speak and with a bandaged arm last week after disappearing from the public eye on May 9, sparking rumours around his health. Despite efforts by local authorities to end speculation with photographs and video of the leader performing duties on May 15, doctors are again raising health concerns. His office previously refused to...

Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko said that Russia has started moving tactical nuclear weapons to his country. “We had to prepare storage areas and stuff. We have done this, so the movement of nuclear weapons has already begun," Lukashenko told Russia’s Pervy TV. Lukashenko, who was on a trip to Moscow, said some of the weapons might already be transferred. He refused to specify the number of weapons and locations of their storage in Belarus and said: "Don't worry about nuclear weapons, we are responsible for this."

Even conservative estimates suggest Russia has lost as many as 10,000 pieces of military hardware in Ukraine Analysts point to failure of Moscow's tactics and Ukraine 'outclassing' Kremlin's troops on the battlefield Tuesday saw Vladimir Putin host Russia's annual Victory Day parade to mark 78 years since the Soviet Union's victory over Nazi Germany. But while recent years have seen ostentatious displays with dozens of the Kremlin's most sophisticated pieces of military hardware rolling through Moscow's famous Red Square, this year saw a significantly slimmed-down affair. Some 8,000 troops took part in the parade - the lowest number since 2008....

Belarusian dictator Alexander Lukashenko checked into a hospital near Minsk, according to Belarusian publication Euroradio and watchdog Belarusian Hajun. They reported that Lukashenko's convoy arrived to the hospital at around 7 p.m., during which time access to the clinic was closed off and the roads to it were guarded by armed enforcers. Lukashenko was publicly seen in Moscow celebrating Victory Day with Russian President Vladimir Putin and leaders of the Commonwealth of Independent States countries, where his apparent physical weakness drew attention. Unlike the other leaders, he had to be driven around the small perimeter where the event took place....

A key autocratic ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin arrived in China for a state visit on Tuesday, amid warnings from United States officials that Beijing may be considering aiding Moscow in its ongoing assault on Ukraine. Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko will stay in China until Thursday and meet with Chinese leader Xi Jinping to discuss a range of issues from trade and investment to “acute international challenges,” Belarus’ state news agency Belta reported Tuesday after confirming the leader’s arrival. His trip comes after the two leaders agreed to upgrade their countries’ ties to an “all-weather comprehensive strategic partnership” during...

The leader of Belarus, Alexander Lukashenko, has long tried to have it both ways. He has worked to gain the approval and support of Russian President Vladimir Putin while also trying to remain independent from Russia, and maintain ties with the Western world. It’s a delicate balancing act, and in the last few weeks, his ability to keep it up—and keep Putin at bay—seems to have all but disappeared, Lukashenko watchers and former diplomats tell The Daily Beast. “He seems to think he has the option to cozy up to the West again, like he did in 2014. That option...

Russia's Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has postponed a planned visit to Minsk following the death of his Belarusian counterpart Vladimir Makei, according to Russian media reports quoting the foreign ministry. Belarus's state news agency Belta reported on Saturday that the long-standing foreign minister and associate of authoritarian leader Alexander Lukashenko had died suddenly. The cause of death wasn't given and Makei wasn't known to suffer from any chronic illness. Makei, 64, was due to meet Lavrov on Monday. Last week he attended a conference of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) -- a military alliance of several post soviet states...

⚡️#BREAKING Ukraine blows up border bridges with Belarus – Minsk— TPYXA ⚡ Middle East 🇸🇩 🇮🇷 🇷🇺 (@MEPaper1090) October 9, 2022⚡️Representatives of #Ukraine's territorial defense are coming to the border, aiming at the border guards of Belarus and shooting in the air, head of Belarusian border committe says— TPYXA ⚡ Middle East 🇸🇩 🇮🇷 🇷🇺 (@MEPaper1090) October 9, 2022

Turkish Airlines has extended its cancellation of flights to and from Belarus and Russia. Prior to Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on February 24, 2022, the national carrier of Turkey operated passenger flights to and from Minsk (MSQ) in Belarus as well as Rostov (RVI), Sochi (AER), and Yekaterinburg (SVX) in Russia. The Istanbul-based air carrier announced that it will not resume flights to the named destinations until at least December 31, 2022. “Our flights from/to Minsk (Belarus) have been canceled until December 31, 2022 (inclusive), from/to Sochi (Russia), have been canceled until December 31, 2022 (inclusive), and from/to Rostov (Russia)...

Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko said he was not planning a mobilisation after his close ally Russia announced it was calling up hundreds of thousands of reservists for the war in Ukraine. "The mobilisation is in Russia. ... There will be no mobilisation (here)," state media quoted Lukashenko as saying.

Twitter: Our sources report: #Lukashenko agreed to deploy 120K soldiers during November-February. (Russia) undertakes to supply 100K mobilized soldiers in addition. Lukashenko is preparing for a full-scale war. The West must issue an ultimatum he cannot refuse

Belarus has allegedly threatened to deploy 100,000 troops in Ukraine unless Kyiv withdraws its forces from the ‘new Russian territories’ after the referendums. According to the Ukrainian General Staff, the Belarus government in Minsk today, Thursday, September 29, announced that unless Kyiv withdraws all of its military forces from the four new regions of Russia, it will deploy 100,000 troops in Ukraine. They were referring of course to the four occupied regions of Ukraine where the recent ‘referendums’ were held in which people allegedly voted to join the Russian Federation. They also revealed that railway stations and airports in the...

Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko accused neighbouring Ukraine on Tuesday of sending 15,000 troops to the border area to build defences and conduct reconnaissance, actions that he called "provocations". Lukashenko allowed his close ally Russia in February to use Belarus as a staging post for its invasion of Ukraine. However, he has said Belarus is not a party to the conflict and that its own forces are not involved. In comments carried by the state news agency BelTA, Lukashenko said the Ukrainian unit brought up to the border had blocked roads and was setting up checkpoints and firing positions. "In a...

Putin squirms in his seat as Belarus dictator Lukashenko rants about men 'running away' from mobilisation in Russia as huge traffic jams on Georgia border are captured in images from SPACE Belarusian president monologued and spouted rhetorical questions in his rant to Putin today in Sochi Putin sat silently, clearly uncomfortable, as he listened to his counterpart insisting that Russia would win war The call for mobilisation has proved wildly unpopular throughout Russia, sparking protests and a mass exodus Hundreds of thousands have already fled the country and traffic jams at several border checkpoints are visible from space This is...

President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko said that God punished the EU with a drought for its policies.President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko said that the drought and other natural disasters in the EU are God's punishment for the chosen political course. He said this at an open lesson in the Minsk Palace of the Republic on Knowledge Day, smartpress.by reports. “In fact, Europe is on the verge of the most powerful food crisis in modern history. God exists. He punished them with this severe drought, and now with terrible storms and floods,” assures Lukashenko. Alexander Lukashenko said that Europe is not...