Lukashenko to invite Russia, Ukraine top prosecutors amid Wagner PMC probe

Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko has suggested inviting chief prosecutors of Russia and Ukraine to help local law enforcers investigate the recently detained group of Russian Wagner Private Military Company.

"We should invite the prosecutor general's offices of Russia and Ukraine to look into the situation with the militants detained in Belarus, President Aleksandr Lukashenko said at a meeting held on 6 August to discuss ways to maintain security during the presidential election," reports BelTA, the Belarusian information agency.

Read also"Little green men" in Belarus: Dozens of militants detained near Minsk part of Russia's PMC Wagner – media (Video)

As UNIAN reported earlier, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky during his phone talks with Belarus leader Alexander Lukashenko on Wednesday, August 5, requested that Belarus extradite a number of detained Wagner troops to Ukraine.

"I hope that all suspects involved in terrorism on the Ukrainian soil will be handed over for prosecution in accordance with the current international legal agreements," the Ukrainian President's Office quoted Zelensky as saying.

Background

• On June 29, thirty-two Russian militants with the Wagner PMC were detained outside Minsk, while another suspect was nabbed in the south of Belarus. Among the suspects were those who are believed to have fought against Ukrainian government forces in the Donbas warzone.
• Belarus law enforcement said they had been tipped about the arrival of over 200 militants to destabilize the country during the election campaign.
• Belarus has asked the Ukrainian authorities to verify information on the involvement of the detainees in crimes committed on Ukraine territory.