Yevgeny Prigozhin and Vladimir Putin
In his first international phone contact since a mutiny by Wagner mercenaries within Russia, Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke to his Belarus ally, President Alexander Lukashenko, on Saturday.
Belarusian state media reported, “The president of Russia called the president of Belarus this morning, and there was a phone conversation”.
“Vladimir Putin informed his Belarusian colleague about the situation in Russia”, it added.
Also read: Kremlin: Putin To Address Russians Soon
Lukashenko has remained Putin’s closest supporter despite allowing Russian soldiers to use Belarusian territory as a launchpad for their Ukraine offensive.
The Kremlin later stated that Putin also spoke with Kazakhstan’s President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev and Uzbekistan’s President Shavkat Mirziyoyev.
“The president informed them about the situation (in Russia)”, Russian news outlets quoted Putin’s spokesperson Dmitry Peskov as saying.
Also read: Russia Declares Reinforced Security In Several Regions
Tokayev informed Putin that developments in Russia were an internal affair, and Putin thanked him for his understanding of the situation.
After initiating the Ukraine offensive last year, Putin, who has few international allies, referred to the Wagner mutiny as a ‘stab in the back’.
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