MINSK, December 19. /TASS/. Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Belarusian counterpart Alexander Lukashenko have begun talks in Minsk. The first part of the meeting takes place in a broad format, with the participation of delegations.

Then the leaders will continue talks in a one-on-one format, after which they are expected to make statements and answer reporters' questions.

The Russian delegation to Minsk includes Deputy Prime Minister Alexey Overchuk, Defense Minister Sergey Shoigu, Kremlin aide Yury Ushakov, presidential press secretary Dmitry Peskov, and Roscosmos CEO Yury Borisov.

As Peskov pointed out, the sides will "have the opportunity to conduct a good review, to compare notes on the allied integration programs, and the most pressing issues on the trade and economic agenda." According to the Kremlin spokesman, the leaders would also touch on military issues, regional and international problems.