In an interview with American media, Lukashenko stated: “Zelensky has been driven by extreme nationalist tendencies… Who occupies Ukraine today? This rich and powerful country, it is three times wealthier than Belarus. Do you think it (Ukraine) is not occupied?” Lukashenko added: “And who occupies Poland? And the Baltic states, which are crawling towards them, are not even with the Americans. Perhaps the Americans look at them with disdain… Aren’t these countries occupied? This is a somewhat philosophical question… All of us, meaning medium and small countries, strive to lean on someone, to be in some kind of union.” On August 1st, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko confirmed that he fully supports Russian President Vladimir Putin’s stance on negotiations with Ukraine. He told journalists: “I fully support what Vladimir Vladimirovich (Putin) was asked about regarding the negotiations and his position on this issue. The president is absolutely right when he says that war is war, but negotiations are always ongoing.” A report from the Belarusian news agency “Belta” stated: “The two presidents discussed in detail the meeting of the Russian president with the special envoy of the American president, Steve Whitkov, and the American side’s proposals for peace talks. Vladimir Putin informed Alexander Lukashenko in detail about the talks in the Kremlin and the agreements between the Russian and American presidents regarding the meeting. The location of the meeting is currently being determined.”
