Russia’s Putin meets Belarusian counterpart in Sochi

By Elena Teslova

MOSCOW

Russian President Vladimir Putin met his Belarusian counterpart Alexander Lukashenko on Friday in the resort city of Sochi, the Kremlin said.

The two leaders were accompanied by representative delegations -- including almost half of the cabinets, according to the statement from the Russian presidency.

The statement did not give further information about the meeting as it was closed to the media.

Prior to the meeting, Putin told reporters that an extensive meeting was necessary since “many questions have risen in the Russia-Belarus relations”.

Lukashenko, for his part, said the Belarus delegation were ready to respond these questions.

Lukashenko repeatedly asserts that Russia treats Belarus as its colony, while Moscow denies such accusations, saying Belarus is “a brother” and closest ally.