Russians and Belarusians are caught and beaten in Ukraine. This was announced on Sunday, February 27, by President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko.
The head of the republic added that about 2,000 people came to the neighbors to rest, “and today they are not only unable to leave, they are beaten there.”
“Is he (Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky – Ed.) pushing me to conduct a special operation so that I can free my people there? <...> Madmen. Don’t touch people,” Lukashenka warned.
According to the Belarusian leader, it is time to resolve the situation around Ukraine, so Zelensky needs to start negotiations.
“And in no bunker – neither in the American one, nor in any other – will he (Zelensky – Ed.) hide. Therefore, today it is necessary to stop the war,” Lukashenka concluded.
Earlier that day, a Russian delegation arrived in Belarus for talks with the Ukrainian side and said it was ready to hold them in Gomel. However, Zelensky said in a video message that Kyiv was not ready for negotiations on the territory of Belarus and demanded a change of site. In response, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov recalled that it was the Ukrainian side that proposed Gomel as a meeting place.
After that, the press secretary of the Ukrainian president, Sergei Nikiforov, said that representatives of Ukraine would not come to Gomel. He noted that negotiations in Belarus were discussed, but “at the last moment, Russian negotiators demanded that the Ukrainian army first lay down their arms,” which Kyiv does not intend to do.
Then the head of the Russian delegation, Vladimir Medinsky, indicated that Russia would wait from Kyiv for confirmation of the negotiations in Gomel until 15:00.
On February 24, Putin, in his special televised address, announced that a special operation would be carried out in the Donbass in order to protect the civilian population. After that, the Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky accused the Russian Federation of hitting the country’s military infrastructure and introduced martial law throughout Ukraine. He also said that Kyiv is breaking off diplomatic relations with Moscow and withdrawing its diplomats from the embassy.
On February 21, the Russian leader signed decrees recognizing the independence of the Luhansk and Donetsk People’s Republics (LPR and DPR). Also, the President of the Russian Federation and the heads of both republics Leonid Pasechnik and Denis Pushilin signed agreements on friendship, cooperation and mutual assistance. The documents were ratified the next day by both the republics themselves and the Russian State Duma.
The situation in Donbass escalated on February 17. The DPR and LPR reported heavy shelling by Ukrainian security forces, including heavy weapons. The republics announced a general mobilization and evacuation of civilians to the territory of Russia.
Since 2014, the Kiev authorities have been conducting a military operation against the inhabitants of Donbass, who refused to recognize the results of the coup d’état and the new government in Ukraine. At the same time, Kyiv blames Moscow for the current situation. Russia has repeatedly stated that it is not a party to the conflict.
For more up-to-date videos and details about the situation in Donbass, watch the Izvestia TV channel.
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