MOSCOW: In the face of full-fledged Western sanctions, Russian President Vladimir Putin said it was critical to enhance cooperation between Russia and Belarus at a joint press conference.

Putin and Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko reportedly held a joint press conference on Tuesday at the Vostochny Cosmodrome in Russia's Far East. "We will continue to stand united in our opposition to any attempts to stifle our countries' development or artificially isolate them from the global economy," Putin added.

Ukraine's bargaining position in the peace talks with Russia, on the other hand, remains unaltered, according to David Arakhamia, the chairman of the Ukrainian team.

"The Ukrainian side has not modified its position on the Istanbul Communique," Arakhamia stated on Telegram. The only difference is that the Ukrainian side ignores all of the other problems that were not addressed in the Istanbul Communique. He said, this may have resulted in a misunderstanding of the current situation of the negotiations.

Ukraine has beefed up security along its borders with Belarus and Moldova's separatist territory of Transnistria. The State Border Guard Service of Ukraine's spokesman, Andriy Demchenko, was cited as saying, "Security measures have been tightened to prevent escalation in these areas."

Demchenko believes that a military attack from Belarus into Ukraine is possible. According to a recent World Bank assessment, Ukraine's gross domestic product will decline by 45.1 percent this year as a result of the conflict with Russia, according to the Interfax-Ukraine news agency.

Ukraine's negotiating posture with Russia remains unchanged: chief negotiator

“Genocide”, says Biden referring to Russia's activities in Ukraine

EAM responds to buying oil from Russia, Shiv Sena MPs also started praising