Putin and Lukashenko don't mention the war in opening remarks in Moscow

Russian President Vladimir Putin welcomed his Belarussian counterpart Alexander Lukashenko to Moscow today to begin two days of talks, but in their opening remarks both men avoided mentioning Ukraine.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said last week the two leaders would discuss Mr Lukashenko's call for an immediate ceasefire.

Last month Russia said it would deploy tactical nuclear weapons in Belarus.

"I must say that we have done a lot as a result of our joint work in all areas," Mr Putin told Mr Lukashenko in comments broadcast by state television.

"We will discuss all of this tomorrow - this applies to our cooperation in the international arena and jointly solving questions of ensuring the security of our states."

Moscow is Minsk's closest political and financial backer.

Mr Lukashenko allowed Russia to use the territory of Belarus to launch part of the invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

Russia and Belarus are formally part of a Union State, a borderless union and alliance between the two former Soviet republics.