Belarus’s foreign minister Vladimir Makei died suddenly Saturday, two days prior to meeting with his Russian counterpart, local state news agencies reported.
Makei, 64, who has held his post since 2012, attended the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) earlier in the week, a military alliance of a number of post-soviet states, which took place in Yerevan, according to Reuters. He was then supposed to meet with his Russian counterpart Sergei Lavrov on Monday.
“The leadership and staff of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation deeply mourn the untimely death on November 26 of this year of the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Belarus Vladimir Vladimirovich Makei,” the Russian ministry wrote in a statement, according to CNN.
🚨 #Belarus: Foreign Affairs Minister Vladimir Makei is dead at 64 years old. Cause of death unknown at this time. pic.twitter.com/71UlPbEmwJ
— Igor Sushko (@igorsushko) November 26, 2022
Makei was reportedly one of the key initiators in pushing Belarus to improve relations with West prior to the mass anti-government protests and presidential election in 2020, Reuters noted. Following the unrest, Makei quickly changed his stance, claiming that the protests had been spurred on by agents from the West.
“Foreign Minister Vladimir Makei has passed away suddenly,” local news outlet Belta reported on Monday. No further details were provided, such as the cause of death. (RELATED: What’s Going On With Vladimir Putin’s Weird Behavior?)
Makei is far from the first sudden and unexplained death linked to eastern Europe and the war with Ukraine. Earlier this year, Russian oil magnate Ravil Maganov died, either after “severe illness” or from jumping or being pushed from a hospital window. The former manager of another oil company, Novatek, was also found dead with his wife and daughter while on vacation in Spain.