Aleksandr Lukashenko and Vladimir Putin visit Valaam

Presidents of Belarus and Russia Aleksandr Lukashenko and Vladimir Putin visited the Christian Orthodox shrines on Valaam Island in Karelia. This is not the first visit, the previous time the heads of state visited Valaam was in July 2019. The presidents toured the Spaso-Preobrazhensky Valaam Monastery, worshipped the relics of St. Sergius and St. Herman, the founders of the monastery. The Valaam Monastery is one of the most revered monasteries in Russia. More than 100 thousand pilgrims and tourists visit the monastery every year.