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“If, as I understand it, Russian citizens have interviewed them, it means that the relevant structures of the Russian Federation must be contacted immediately to explain what is happening,” Lukashenko said during an urgent government meeting.
The president is quoted by the state news agency BelTA.
Mr. Lukashenko said he viewed the arrest of 33 Russian citizens as a special event and ordered Valery Vakulchik, chairman of the State Security Committee, to ask the Russian authorities to explain “what was happening”.
Commenting on the incident, the President of Belarus accused the Russians of having “dirty intentions.”
“I am seeing the Russian reaction. They are already justifying, justifying, that we almost brought them here ourselves. Of course, you have to somehow justify your dirty intentions. Therefore, I would ask a lot that in this situation and with this event, everything be absolutely open and honest, “said Lukashenko.
BelTA reported that the detainees were members of the private Wagner military company, according to police information.
Wagner is an enigmatic Russian mercenary organization controlled by an ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin. Thousands of Wagner contractors are believed to support Moscow’s interests in various conflicts abroad, including Syria, Ukraine and Libya.
The latest event is the last unexpected twist in the presidential election campaign in Belarus, during which Lukashenko has already sent his main rivals behind bars before the vote on August 9.
Speaking at an urgent meeting of his Security Council, Lukashenko emphasized that he did not want to “blacken” Russia, but added that it was very important for Moscow to confess.
“If they are guilty, they must come out of this situation with honor,” said the president.
Kremlin-backed writer Zachar Prilepin, who fought among Moscow-backed separatists in eastern Ukraine, said he knew some of the men detained in Belarus.
On Facebook, he wrote that Belarus was probably a transit point for these fighters on their way to “somewhere else.”
Belarus, unlike Russia, has not quarantined the coronavirus pandemic and is operating as normal.
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