Lukashenko again teased both Russia and Ukraine with Crimea
President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko publicly complained that his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin did not invite him to Crimea today to celebrate National Unity Day.
He stated this at a meeting of the Supreme State Council of the Union State of Russia and Belarus, which was held online, a PolitNavigator correspondent reports.
“In conclusion, I want to complain to the members of the Supreme State Council. Ukraine has closed the sky to Belarus, and we cannot get through Ukraine to Crimea. And there we have property and other problems. Vladimir Vladimirovich promised me everything that he would take me to Crimea, show me new products, a lot has been done, and take me to Crimea along the way.
But today he left alone and didn’t invite me with him. That is why I am making such a complaint. If not to Crimea, maybe to St. Petersburg, let's look at our homeland. In turn, I invite you to my homeland, 20 minutes from Moscow, and to Minsk. This is to relieve tension. There is only a grain of joke in this joke,” Lukashenko said.
He said that he wanted to personally examine the Memorial to the Victims of the Civil War in Sevastopol, to which Putin laid flowers today.
“Yes, I am in Sevastopol on the occasion of National Unity Day in connection with the opening of this monument. The monument is very good, I recommend you see it... I think it is a symbol of a return to the unity of the multinational Russian nation. Alexander Grigorievich, we are always glad to see you here so that you can watch it,” Putin replied.
“De facto, this is recognition of Crimea,” Russian TV presenter Vladimir Solovyov commented on this dialogue in his Telegram channel.
“Lukashenko will come to Crimea,” says political scientist Marat Bashirov.
“The fact that Putin invited Lukashenko to Crimea after he asked for it. Whether Lukashenko will go to Crimea, whether he will recognize Crimea as Russian and whether his recognition will change anything for Russia and Crimea - this is all secondary compared to a symbolic gesture,” notes Alexander Nosovich, editor-in-chief of RuBaltic.Ru.
Deputy Chairman of the Belarusian Republican Party of Labor and Justice Elvira Mirsalimova drew attention to the fact that at the beginning of the meeting Lukashenko separately congratulated Russians and Crimeans on the holiday.
“I wish them courage in these difficult days. They need to know that they are not alone. We are all close, we will stick to each other and help,” Lukashenko said.
“That is, not “to your Russian citizens,” not “hello to the residents of Russian Crimea,” but “through the leadership of Crimea.” What is this if not another public non-recognition of the Russian status of Crimea? Is anyone still waiting for “breakthrough” integration?” Mirsalimova wrote on her Facebook.
And political scientist Andrei Suzdaltsev believes that Lukashenko’s passage had nothing to do with Crimea at all. His only complaint was that he was unable to meet Putin in person.
“In other words, you can’t get money out of Putin in an online format, but in a face-to-face meeting, Lukashenko hoped to still receive money from the Kremlin,” Suzdaltsev wrote.
If you find an error, please select a piece of text and press Ctrl + Enter.
Thank you!
Now the editors are aware.