Putin’s two-day visit to the ex-Soviet nation will begin on May 31.
The Russian president will then travel to Germany and France, at the invitation of German Chancellor Angela Merkel and France’s new President Francois Hollande.
Belarus president Alexander Lukashenko invited Putin for a visit during a telephone conversation earlier this month.
While being inaugurated as the president on May 7, Putin placed Belarus among Russia’s major foreign-policy priorities. The visit, according to Russian media, will send a message of solidarity with the ex-soviet nation that has come under Western criticism over issues related to human rights.
Putin was scheduled to travel to the US to attend the G8 summit on May 18, 19 at Camp David in Washington, DC. However, he cancelled the trip in what was considered as a snub to the US government. Putin defended his absence by saying that he had to stay in Moscow to finalize cabinet appointments in the new government.
SAB/MA
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