Russian President Vladimir Putin with President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko today. Photo credit: en.kremlin.ru
Saint Petersburg: The President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko, much under attack of the West over his dictatorial rule, met his closest ally, the Russian President, Vladimir Putin, at the Constantine Palace here today, pronouncing that “any sanctions mean opportunities”.
While Putin noted that Belarus was servicing all its loans, “despite the coronavirus and any other “infections,” including those connected with external challenges”, Lukashenko responded by taking a jibe at the West and saying” “It is gratifying that our trade is growing in spite of all those, you must have been embarrassed to say, all those “viruses,” as you said, from the outside in relation of Belarus and Russia.”
Lukashenko went on to explain to Putin: “The problem is not only, as you very rightly pointed out, the “viruses” from the outside, those sanctions, the problem is that the global economy has declined a great deal. You (Putin) noted that during your Direct Line (programme). But we will survive all those pricing attacks.”
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Alluding to Belarus’ “powerful” links with the Russian economy, Lukashenko said after he faced another wave of sanctions…”the fourth or the fifth, I have lost count now”, the country was diversifying. “Today you clearly see our relations with the “collective West,” he told Putin, and claimed Belarus had insignificant trade with them, particularly with the European Union. “They have introduced sanctions against MAZ and BelAZ, but the trade these enterprises conducted with the European Union amounted to, how much, do you think? To $3.3 million in one case and $4 million in another. For this reason, we are working on our markets, as we did from time immemorial, one can say.”
Putin reiterated that Belarus remains Russia’s “major and reliable” partner in the economy. He pointed out that although last year the mutual trade between the two countries went down a little because of the coronavirus, by about 17 percent, during the first four or five months of this year, it increased considerably, by over 37 percent. “This is a good indicator,” he said, and hoped that the industrial ties, “which we have had since the Soviet era and which we have been developing during the past years”, is having a positive impact on the economy of both Russia and Belarus.Lukashenko acknowledged that while financially, Belarus was always hard pressed…Russia was helping us a lot in this regard as well. “And we are reverently trying to perform our loan obligations, I mean loans that have been issued, and we will deliver on our commitments regardless of the cost,” he assured Putin.
– global bihari bureau
