Lukashenko says he is willing to meet Zelenskyy "anywhere", including in Ukraine

Self-proclaimed Belarusian president Alexander Lukashenko has stated that he is open to holding talks with President Volodymyr Zelenskyy and is willing to meet him "at any location" for this purpose.

Source: Belarusian state-owned news agency BelTA, citing Lukashenko

Details: Lukashenko claimed that there is "only one case" in which Belarus could be drawn into the war – if "aggression is committed against its territory". "We are not going to get drawn into the war in Ukraine. There is no necessity for this. Neither civil nor military," he said.

At the same time, Lukashenko stated that he is open to a conversation with Zelenskyy.

Quote: "If he [Zelenskyy – ed.] wants to discuss something, seek advice, or anything else, he is welcome to; we are open to this. I am ready to meet him at any location – Ukraine or Belarus – and discuss the issues in Belarusian-Ukrainian relations. And possibly to talk about prospects. For some reason we have things to talk about with the Americans, Germans, Poles, Lithuanians and Latvians, but with Ukraine there is nothing to talk about..."

Background:

• On 15 May, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky reported, following a meeting with military leadership, intelligence and security services, that Ukraine continues to record Russia's attempts to draw Belarus further into the war against Ukraine and instructed the defence forces to present a response plan.
• Belarus's Defence Ministry announced that exercises for units on the combat deployment of nuclear weapons began in Belarus on 18 May. They are being conducted in coordination with Russian military forces.
• Ukraine's Foreign Ministry has described the deployment of Russian tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus and the joint nuclear exercises of the two dictatorships as an unprecedented challenge to the global security architecture and called for a robust response from Kyiv's international partners.
• In 2022, some Russian forces entered Ukrainian territory from Belarusian territory. Missile strikes were also carried out from its territory.

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