MOSCOW (Reuters) - President Vladimir Putin has ordered Russia's government to help Belarus weather western sanctions imposed during Minsk's crackdown on political opponents, the Kremlin said on Thursday.

       Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko travelled to Russia, a close ally, to hold talks with Putin on Tuesday. The European Union and United States have imposed punitive measures on Belarus in recent months.

       "Support for Belarus against the backdrop of such stifling sanctions is on the agenda, and the government has been given instructions and it is working in this regard," said Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov.

       (Reporting by Gleb Stolyarov; writing by Tom Balmforth; editing by John Stonestreet)