Peskov: Putin-Lukashenko talks ended well past midnight

The talks between Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Belarusian counterpart Alexander Lukashenko held on Wednesday were substantive and ended well past midnight, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.

"Ahead of [a Supreme State Council meeting], the two leaders held a very long and substantive discussion. It ended well past midnight," Peskov said.

According to the spokesman, Putin and Lukashenko met for tete-a-tete talks in the Kremlin on Wednesday. The leaders discussed bilateral and international issues. Putin stressed that a lot has been done in all domains of joint work between Russia and Belarus. Specifically, he highlighted the results of bilateral economic cooperation, pointing to a 12% increase in trade between the two countries last year.