How is Lukashenko using the Wagner group to "squeeze" Putin?

Alexander Lukashenko used Vladimir Putin's fear of the Wagner Group as leverage during talks between the Belarusian and Russian leaders this week.

The US-based independent Institute for the Study of War (ISW) said this showed Putin's anxiety over the fate of the mercenary group led by Yevgeny Prigozhin.

Alternatively, Wagner staged an uprising on June 24, in which mercenaries "captured" military facilities in the southern Russian city of Rostov-on-Don and marched on Moscow.

Read too Andrei Troshev: Who is Wagner's mercenary that Putin wants to replace Prigozhin?

Meanwhile, a one-day trip by Lukashenko to St. Petersburg began on Sunday and lasted for three days.

Putin told the Belarusian leader he was prepared to adjust his schedule to talk in more detail, according to the BBC Russian Service.

However, an expert told him Newsweek that the meeting was "simply a show aimed at intimidating and provoking the West", reports Telegrafi.

And Russian news channel Telegram Brief said the Wagner Group was the most important topic of the meeting.

Lukashenko also asked Putin for more economic aid through the Union state defense and integration agreement between the countries.

On the other hand, the channel added that Putin wanted Minsk to be more involved in his invasion of Ukraine.

E Hanna Liubakova, a journalist from the capital of Belarus, Minsk, and non-resident fellow of the American think tank The Atlantic Council, estimates that Lukashenko is seeking to strengthen his position as a regional player.

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"Putin shares similar goals with Lukashenko in wanting to demonstrate strength and control, particularly in response to Prigozhin's rebellion," she told Newsweek.

She believed that Lukashenko's actions could also be interpreted as him seeking more significant support from Putin for his role as mediator.

"By mentioning the desire of the Wagner mercenaries to head west and the pressure he feels, Lukashenko may be trying to emphasize the importance of his position and the possible implications if he loses control of the situation."

This means that the Belarusian authoritarian leader “may be using the presence of Wagner's mercenaries as leverage to demand more tangible support from Putin. This may include additional resources and economic support."

"The plot orchestrated by Lukashenko and Putin in St. Petersburg seems to be just a show to scare and provoke the West once again," she added.

Newsweek notes that so far, Lukashenko has not played a direct role in the war in Ukraine, although, as Putin's closest ally, he has allowed the territory of Belarus to be used as a staging post.

Read too Wagner's fighters in Belarus do not have the necessary forces to launch any offensive - new satellite images prove it

In addition, nuclear weapons have also been transferred from Russia to Belarus.

However, experts have said that the unpopularity among Belarusians of Putin's invasion of Ukraine could make Lukashenko vulnerable if he became more involved in Ukraine.

As reported, the deal Prigozhin reached to end last month's uprising, reportedly brokered by Lukashenko, included agreeing to an exile for him and his troops in Belarus. There are likely up to 4,000 Wagner fighters in the country, according to the Belarusian opposition in exile, as previously reported by Newsweek. /Telegraph/