MOSCOW, May 26. /TASS/. Talks between Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Belarusian counterpart Alexander Lukashenko are scheduled to be held on Friday, May 28, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on Wednesday.
"Yes, preparations for such a working visit [Lukashenko’s visit to Russia - TASS] are underway. That will be a conversation between the two presidents, which, as it is planned, will continue during a working lunch," Peskov said. According to the Kremlin spokesman, no media statements are planned following the meeting.
The Kremlin spokesman earlier said that the talks between the two leaders had been planned before the Ryanair plane incident. He also noted that Lukashenko would have an opportunity to brief the Russian head of state on the circumstances of the incident in detail.
On May 23, a Vilnius-bound Ryanair flight that took off from Athens made an emergency landing at Minsk International Airport after a reported bomb threat. No bomb was found on board. Minsk specified that Roman Protasevich, one of the co-founders of the Nexta Telegram channel recognized as extremist in Belarus, had been among the passengers. Protasevich, currently living in Lithuania and wanted in Belarus, was detained after the airliner landed in the Belarusian capital. The plane left Minsk and continued on to Vilnius late on the same day.
On Monday, EU leaders decided to ban Belarusian airlines from flying to EU airports and performing flights over the European Union. They also advised European air carriers to avoid Belarusian airspace. The participants in the summit also decided to impose new sanctions on Minsk.