Belarusian President Alexandre Loukachenkoa close ally of Russia, called on Friday for a “truce” in Ukraine and talks “without preconditions” between Moscow and Kyiv. “We must stop now, before the escalation begins. I take the risk of suggesting a cessation of hostilities,” said Alexander Lukashenko, in power since 1994, during a speech to the nation. “It is possible – and must – to settle all territorial, reconstruction, security and other issues at the negotiating table without preconditions,” he added.

The Belarusian leader, who holds the West and Ukraine responsible for the conflict, also said he feared a “nuclear” war because of Western support for kyiv, while Vladimir Poutine earlier announced its intention to deploy “tactical” nuclear weapons in Belarus. “Because of UNITED STATES and their satellites an all-out war has been unleashed” in Ukraine, he said, believing that from then on, “nuclear fires lie in wait on the horizon”.

“You all understand and know that there is only one solution: negotiations! Negotiations without preconditions,” he said. Stressing that the “military-industrial complex is running at full speed in Russia” and that Ukraine was “flooded with Western weapons”, Alexander Lukashenko worried about an upcoming “escalation” which will cause many deaths.

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky swore on Friday to defeat the “Russian evil” on the first anniversary of the Russian withdrawal from Boutcha, a martyred city that has become a crying symbol of “the atrocities” attributed to Moscow troops. “We are going to win for sure, the Russian evil will fall, right here in Ukraine and will not be able to get up again”, hammered President Zelensky in front of the Croatian Prime Ministers Andrej Plenkovic, Slovak Eduard Heger, Slovenian Robert Golob and the President of Moldova Maia Sandu. The Ukrainian leader also claimed that Butcha must become a “symbol of justice” and called for “every Russian murderer” to be brought to justice for “genocidal violence”.

For his part, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko, Russia’s only ally in Europe, called for a truce and “unconditional” negotiations to end the war, while holding the West responsible for the conflict. Reacting to this proposal, the Kremlin ruled out stopping its “military operation” in Ukraine. The Ukrainian president had previously sworn to “punish all the culprits” of the Boutcha massacre.

On March 31, 2022, the Russian army withdrew from this city and all of northern Kiev, a month after launching the invasion of the country on the orders of President Vladimir Putin. Two days after the withdrawal, the massacre was known. AFP journalists discovered in Boutcha on April 2 charred carcasses of vehicles, destroyed houses and above all, scattered over several hundred meters, the bodies of twenty men in civilian clothes, one of whom had his hands tied in the back.

The All England Lawn Tennis Club (AELTC), which organizes Wimbledon and had refused the participation of Russian and Belarusian players in 2022 due to the war in Ukraine, announced on Friday that it “intends” to accept them under “conditions” this year (July 3-16).

“Our current intention is to accept the participation of Russian and Belarusian players provided that they compete as ‘neutral’ athletes and that they meet the required conditions”, announces the AELTC, emphasizing in particular that “they will be prohibited from expressing support for the Russian invasion of Ukraine” and that players “receiving financial aid” from Russia or Belarus to participate in the tournament will not be allowed to participate.