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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."

that he was seriously ill. The Belarusian outlet, Pul Pervogo, posted the photo of the 68-year-old on its Telegram channel - which is known for reporting on the president - after his whereabouts were unknown for almost a week. The channel said the president was working at a central air force command base. In the post, he is standing stern-faced as he receives a salute with a bandage tied to his left hand. Mr Lukashenko had not been seen in public since last Tuesday (9 May) at Victory Day events in Moscow, and later in the Belarusian capital, Minsk. The...

SPECULATION is rising that Vladimir Putin’s close war ally, Belarus tyrant Alexander Lukashenko is seriously ill - or even dead. He has not been seen since in public since he was rushed to the airport with an ambulance in tow in Moscow after attending Russia’s Victory Day military parade on Tuesday. The Duma announced late day on May 14 that Lukashenko is sick, but "does not have COVID". First Deputy Chairman of the Duma said: "There's nothing so supernatural there, it's not Covid. A person just got sick. "Despite the fact that the person fell ill, he considered it his...

Belarus' leader Alexander Lukashenko has missed a major state celebration, further fuelling health speculation. The autocratic politician, 68, usually speaks publicly at the annual National Flag, Emblem and Anthem Day event but his prime minister read a message on his behalf on Sunday. Last week, Mr Lukashenko left Moscow soon after Victory Day parade, skipping lunch with President Vladimir Putin. Mr Lukashenko looked visibly tired, and his right hand was bandaged. He was last seen in public laying flowers in the capital Minsk during Belarus' own Victory Day celebrations on 9 May - a few hours after returning from the...

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....

This is the moment a hobbling Alexander Lukashenko begged Vladimir Putin and a Russian security operative to provide him with transport and save him from walking at today's military parade. Doddering along, the Belarusian tyrant was unable to walk less than a quarter of a mile alongside Vladimir Putin at the Red Square event. The despot had been shuffling to the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier in Alexander Garden, alongside the Kremlin wall, to lay a wreath with the Kremlin ruler and other ex-Soviet republic leaders. Appearing in evident discomfort, Lukashenko grimaced and pleaded with Putin to get him some...

peculation is surrounding Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko's health after he reportedly made an early exit during Russia's Victory Day festivities. Lukashenko was photographed at the event with a visible bandage on his right arm. A staunch Putin ally, Lukashenko was the only one of the invited heads of state who did not join Putin in laying down flowers at the tomb of the Unknown Soldier, a 300-meter walk from where he was seated during the procession, Belarusian newspaper Nasha Niva reported. Belarusian political analyst Dmitry Bolkunets wrote on Telegram that Lukashenko also did not attend a meal with Putin and...

For Ruslan, an engineer in the Belarus capital of Minsk, Russia’s war in neighboring Ukraine suddenly seemed closer than ever when a conscription office recently sent him a summons for military training. It’s part of an effort that will see thousands of men in Belarus attend drills amid fears that the staunch Moscow ally could be drawn into the fighting. “They are telling us that Belarus won’t enter the war against Ukraine, but I hear Russian warplanes roar over my house heading to the Machulishchi air base outside Minsk,” the 27-year-old told The Associated Press in a telephone interview. He...

Russian President Vladimir Putin welcomed Belarus counterpart Alexander Lukashenko to Moscow on Wednesday for two days of talks, but in their opening public remarks both men steered clear of the war in Ukraine. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said last week the two leaders would discuss Lukashenko's call for an immediate ceasefire in Ukraine. Last month Putin said Russia would deploy tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus. "I must say that we have done a lot as a result of our joint work in all areas," Putin told Lukashenko in comments broadcast by state television.

Russia said on Friday that a ceasefire in Ukraine would not enable it to achieve the goals of its "special military operation" at the moment. The Kremlin was reacting after Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko - Russia's closest ally - called for an immediate ceasefire, without preconditions, and for both Moscow and Kyiv to start negotiations on a lasting peace settlement. Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters Russia had noted Lukashenko's comments and that President Vladimir Putin would discuss it with him next week. But he said Russia's goals in Ukraine could not be achieved at the moment through a halt...

Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko said on Friday that he had intensified talks with Russia about deploying tactical nuclear weapons in his country, alleging there were plans to invade Belarus from neighboring Poland. Speaking at an annual address to lawmakers and government officials, Lukashenko said Moscow’s plans to station nuclear arms in Belarus would help “safeguard” the country, which he said was under threat from the West. “Take my word for it, I have never deceived you. They are preparing to invade Belarus, to destroy our country,” he told the audience.

Russia has struck a deal with Belarus to station tactical nuclear weapons on its territory but will not violate non-proliferation agreements, Vladimir Putin has said.The Belarusian president, Alexander Lukashenko, had long raised the issue of stationing tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus, which borders Poland, Putin told state television.“There is nothing unusual here either: firstly, the United States has been doing this for decades,” he said. “They have long deployed their tactical nuclear weapons on the territory of their allied countries. A video grab from footage released by the Russian defence ministry last month apparently shows Russian forces in a drill...

Russia has struck a deal with neighbouring Belarus to station tactical nuclear weapons on its territory but will not violate non-proliferation agreements, President Vladimir Putin said on Saturday. Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko had long raised the issue of stationing tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus, which borders Poland, Putin told state television. "There is nothing unusual here either: firstly, the United States has been doing this for decades. They have long deployed their tactical nuclear weapons on the territory of their allied countries," he said. "We agreed that we will do the same - without violating our obligations, I emphasize, without...

Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko will pay an official visit to Iran on 12-13 March, BelTA learned from the press service of the Belarusian leader. In Tehran, the Belarusian head of state is expected to hold talks with Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi. During a meeting on the sidelines of the SCO summit in Samarkand on 16 September 2022, the leaders of the two countries instructed the foreign ministries to take stock of relations and to intensify them. The talks in Tehran will focus on the development of cooperation across the entire spectrum of bilateral relations with an emphasis on trade and...

Belarus’s authoritarian president has signed a bill introducing capital punishment for state officials and military personnel convicted of high treason. The amendments to the country’s criminal code endorsed by President Alexander Lukashenko envisage death sentences for officials and service personnel who cause “irreparable damage” to Belarus’s national security through acts of treason. Belarus is the only country in Europe that has not banned capital punishment, which has been applied to those convicted of murder or terrorism. Executions are carried out with a shot to the back of the head. Lukashenko has ruled Belarus with an iron fist for nearly three...

Belarus partisans said they blew up a Russian A-50 surveillance military aircraft The two Belarusians who carried out operation had used drones, it was claimed Belarusian partisans and members of the country's exiled opposition said they damaged Vladimir Putin's A-50U surveillance military aircraft in a secret mission. Two participants had used drones and had already left the country, claimed Franak Viacorka, a close adviser of opposition figurehead Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya. Front and central parts of the AWACS Beriev A-50U aircraft as well as the radar antenna were damaged from two explosions at the Machulishchy air base near Minsk, Belarusian anti-government organisation...

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...

At the invitation of Chinese President Xi Jinping, President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko will pay a state visit to China from February 28 to March 2, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua Chunying announced on Saturday.Cooperation with a focus on post-pandemic economic recovery and Russia-Ukraine conflict could be key topics during his visit, experts said.The lingering Russia-Ukraine military conflict will also be discussed as it has led to an increasingly tense relationship between the West and Russian as well as West and Belarus, Cui predicted, noting that, given the situation, practical cooperation with China means a lot to Belarus.

Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko will visit China on February 28 for a state visit, the Chinese foreign ministry said Saturday. Lukashenko is a close ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin and has backed Moscow's invasion of Ukraine, with Belarus dependent on its neighbour both financially and politically. "At the invitation of Chinese President Xi Jinping, President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko will pay a state visit to China from February 28 to March 2," spokesperson Hua Chunying said. Chinese foreign minister Qin Gang told his Belarusian counterpart Sergei Aleinik that Beijing is willing to work with Minsk to deepen mutual political...