President Lukashenko rushed to return from Russia to Belarus and did not address the public on Victory Day
Photo: Lilia Sharlovskaya
Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, who participated in the parade on Red Square in Moscow on the morning of May 9, managed to return to Minsk in the afternoon and to take part in events on the occasion of Victory Day.
On Victory Square in the Belarusian capital, Lukashenko laid a wreath at the Victory Obelisk as part of the ceremony, but did not speak to the audience. He commissioned Defense Minister Viktor Khrenin to deliver a speech assuring that the country “is ready to reject anyone who tries to violate the sacred borders of Belarus,” according to the Pool of the First Telegram channel close to Lukashenko. The president himself stood aside at the time along with the rest of the high-ranking participants of the event.
A number of Belarusian and Russian media had previously circulated reports that Lukashenko had left Moscow immediately after the event. parade and did not attend an informal breakfast with the President of the Russian Federation Vladimir Putin and the leaders of the six CIS countries. As MK wrote, Putin and his guests went from the stage to the square to the Eternal Flame in the Alexander Garden, and only Lukashenka was allowed to be driven to the place by car. Against this background, rumors appeared in the press about the possible ill health of the Belarusian leader, which only strengthened the news about his refusal to speak in Minsk. Lukashenko's press service did not officially comment on such assumptions.