On the 29th, the Belarusian State News Agency reported that at 5.30 am local time, the Belarusian National Security Agency arrested 33 Russian citizens. According to the Belarusian State Security Agency, the 33 Russians were members of the Russian paramilitary organization Wagner Private Military Company. Of these, 32 were arrested near Minsk and one in a city in southern Belarus. According to sources, more than 200 militants arrived in Belarus in an attempt to disrupt the situation during the election. On the same day, Belarusian President Lukashenko held an emergency meeting to discuss the matter. At the meeting, the head of the Belarusian National Security Council Vakuchik confirmed that the arrested Russian citizens belonged to the Russian Wagner Private Military Company.
In response, later in the day, Deputy Chairman of the International Affairs Committee of the Russian Federation Council (upper house of parliament) Jabarov told the media that Russia is verifying the news about the arrest of Russian citizens in Belarus. Jabarov emphasized that Russia has never planned to destabilize the situation in neighboring countries, nor will it use private arms to interfere in other countries’ elections. Belarus is a close ally of Russia.
On August 9 this year, Belarus will hold presidential elections. The president of Belarus has a five-year term. The current President Lukashenko was sworn in on November 6, 2015.
(Headquarters reporter Wang Bin and Gu Xin)