Lavrov laid a wreath at the Victory Monument in Minsk

On June 15, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov laid flowers at the Victory Monument in the center of Minsk as part of the 85th anniversary of the outbreak of the Great Patriotic War.

The ceremony took place as part of the Russian Foreign Minister's state visit to Belarus to meet with his counterpart Maxim Ryzhenkov and President of the Republic Alexander Lukashenko.

A monument in honor of the Victory and in memory of the soldiers of the Soviet army, partisans and underground fighters who died during the war was unveiled in Minsk on the 10th anniversary of the liberation of Belarus from the occupying German troops. In 1961, an Eternal Flame was lit at the foot of the monument.

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The day before, the Russian Foreign Ministry announced that the plane of the Russian Foreign Minister landed at Minsk airport. It was clarified that during his upcoming visit to Belarus, Lavrov will discuss strategies to combat Western sanctions and legal aggression with the head of the republic, Alexander Lukashenko, and the head of the Belarusian Foreign Ministry, Maxim Ryzhenkov.

On June 12, Lukashenko congratulated Russian Leader Vladimir Putin and the citizens of the Russian Federation on Russia Day. In his congratulatory message, the President of Belarus pointed out that Belarusians and Russians are linked by allied relations, a common history and the memory of jointly overcome trials and achieved victories. According to him, the friendship between Moscow and Minsk inspires fraternal peoples to further development and new achievements.