MINSK, 26 August (BelTA) – In an interview with Belarus 1 TV channel on 26 August Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko commented on the appointment of Mikhail Babich Ambassador of Russia to Belarus and Russian president’s envoy for trade ad economic cooperation with Belarus.
“Mikhail Babich may not be a heavyweight but he certainly carries a lot of weight in politics. He has made a certain career. He is an experienced person, well familiar with many problems. Minsk is the CIS headquarters. So naturally Mikhail Babich will perform additional functions given his experience,” the head of state noted.
Alexander Lukashenko said that he previously discussed the Russian ambassador nominee in a telephone conversation with Vladimir Putin. “We discussed this matter probably a month and a half ago or two when the Russian president was thinking over the new ambassador nominee in connection with the expiration of Alexander Surikov’s tenure,” Alexander Lukashenko said.
“All those speculations that they are sending someone to take Belarus under control, to control Lukashenko are absolute nonsense,” the Belarusian head of state said.
The president also noted that Vladimir Putin’s meeting with the new ambassador Mikhail Babich soon after their in Sochi had nothing to do with the recent talks as the leaders agreed upon the nominee earlier. “We did not discuss the new ambassador to Belarus during the meeting,” Alexander Lukashenko said.
“The fact that Vladimir Putin vested Mikhail Babich with new functions is probably because he personally trusts him and because Mikhail Babich is a person who can solve these issues. At least, we hope so. We are ready to work with any representative of the Russian Federation. We know how any Russian ambassador to Belarus will act. If they want Belarus to remain its closest ally, the ambassador should act correspondingly,” the head of state said.