Former President of Georgia Mikheil Saakashvili, during his speech in a Tbilisi court on the case of embezzlement of state funds, said that during his presidency he secretly met with Alexander Lukashenko four times in London.
Mikhail Saakashvili in court. Photo: Irakli Gedenidze/POOL/TASS
According to Saakashvili, there he agreed with Lukashenka on Belarus not recognizing the independence of Abkhazia and South Ossetia from Georgia.
“I four times secretly met with Lukashenka in London. This is the first time I'm talking about this. It was secret diplomacy. The fact that Lukashenka has not yet recognized South Ossetia and Abkhazia is the result of my trips to London,” Saakashvili said (quoted by TASS).
Saakashvili did not specify the exact date of their meetings, referring to the secrecy of this information.
Earlier, in an interview with Vladimir Solovyov, Lukashenko said that he did not exclude the recognition of the independence of Abkhazia and South Ossetia. According to him, this can happen as soon as he understands the need for this step, and Russian President Vladimir Putin will tell him about it.