Alarm bells are ringing in Minsk hospitalization of the president of the country, Alexander Lukashenkor, according to independent Belarusian media such as Euroradio, he is currently at the Central Republican Medical Clinic, nicknamed “the president”, since Saturday at 19:00 local time. Although there are rumors that hospitalization is linked to an illness critical health condition, no source verified such information.
He was photographed at the celebrations of May 9 Victory Day in Moscow. bandaged hand and left Russia ahead of time. same night canceled his dinner With his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin and ever since 5 days without appearing publiclysomething that fuels all kinds of speculation.
As reported by Reuters, Lukashenko’s hand was already bandaged when he arrived in Moscow on May 9. Her the absence became noticeable This Sunday is Belarus Flag Day, when the country’s prime minister, Roman Golovchenko, replaces him in his official speech. State media such as Belta news agency ignore the leader’s absence and even quote him in their reports. there is not a single picture of him Present at the official action in the Belarusian capital.
Lukashenko became Kremlin’s most loyal ally in the world despite some punctual disagreements on some issues. During the 2020 protests, where the opposition claimed electoral fraud and called for free elections, Putin was a big supporter of Lukashenko, who even sent him journalists from the state media to mitigate the effects of the strikes.
This is mutual, because he is one of the few people on the Old Continent who has not turned their back on Moscow. for this he was punished with sanctions Lighter than those taken by Russia. At the beginning of the Russian-Ukrainian conflict, troops attacking northern Ukraine, At key points such as Kiev and the Chernobyl nuclear power plant They entered from the territory of Belarus. Prior to February 24, 2022, these military personnel were in the country conducting joint military exercises with the local army.
“Little Belarus”
Minsk for years varies by moscow Both economically and militarily. Moscow often provides soft loans and the sale of raw materials at affordable prices to support its ally. Recently, the Kremlin has gone even further, going so far as to express its intention to defend the country’s territory as its own by measures such as the deployment of Russian tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus.
Both states are part of the Union State, a kind of confederation. integration of the two countries in areas such as the border or the economy. Currently, Russians and Belarusians can travel freely between the two states with their national passports equivalent to the Spanish DNI, and it was recently confirmed that foreigners holding a visa in Russia can travel to Belarus and vice versa.
There are other projects on the table, such as the creation of a common currency (both keep their own ruble for now) or further political integration, which has given rise to rumors of unification in a single state. The idea does not please Lukashenko, who has always pointed out that he wants to be “a friend of Moscow, not a vassal.”