Lukashenko Worries He’s ‘Upset’ Putin by Inviting Biden to Belarus
The President of Belarus tried to make a joke about it at a meeting in Russia.
Vladimir Astapkovich/Kremlin via Reuters
Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko had an awkward exchange with Vladimir Putin on Friday the day after inviting Joe Biden to Minsk. Discussing Biden’s upcoming trip to Poland, Lukashenko on Thursday told reporters that the U.S. President should instead visit Belarus where Lukashenko said he is “ready for him” to discuss ending the war in Ukraine. “And even Putin will fly up to Minsk, and the three of us will meet here: two ‘aggressors’ and a ‘peace-loving’ president,” Lukashenko added. On Friday, Lukashenko traveled to Putin’s residence near Moscow for a meeting. “Thank you for agreeing to come,” Putin said in televised remarks. “How could I not agree?” Lukashenko replied. Putin went on to say he’d watched Lukashenko’s press conference a day earlier. “Of course you did,” Lukashenko replied. “It probably upset you?” Putin assured him that it hadn’t, adding: “I share your position and approaches, you know.”
Yesterday Lukashenko invited Biden to Minsk.
— Anton Gerashchenko (@Gerashchenko_en) February 17, 2023
Today he urgently flew to Moscow to find out whether Putin was upset by that. pic.twitter.com/GdiP64vSNj
See more of our coverage in your search results.
Got a tip? Send it to The Daily Beast here.
Register below to read this article for free or subscribe
to unlock unlimited access to The Daily Beast.
Monthly
$1
First month then $5.99/month
Annual
$35
First year then $59.99/year
Premium
$79
First year then $119.99/year
*Substack access provided by the next business day, using your subscription email. Choosing the Premium plan constitutes your permission to share your subscription email with Substack and your agreement to Substack’s Privacy Policy.
Already have an account? Sign In
Looks like you already have a subscription!
You're all set!
Thanks for subscribing.