Opinions & Interviews
Lukashenko: All CIS states should take action to address common regional issues
MINSK, 28 May (BelTA) – All the member states of the Commonwealth of Independent States should get involved in addressing common regional issues, Belarus President Aleksandr Lukashenko said as he met with heads of the delegations to the CIS Heads of Government Council session on 28 May, BelTA has learned.
“I am convinced that all countries of the Commonwealth should be involved in tackling common regional problems in various integration formats,” the head of state said.
Aleksandr Lukashenko praised the way the Eurasian Intergovernmental Council meeting was held in Kazan on 29 April. Moldova, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Turkmenistan participated in the summit in the status of observer states and guests of honor.
“The credit for bringing all these people together goes to you,” Aleksandr Lukashenko said addressing Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin. “Even those who hesitated finally made up their mind to go there, get together and talk. It doesn’t matter whether those were Commonwealth members or observer states, or anyone else. Obviously, that was the idea of the Russian side. I want to reiterate that I appreciate that you did this. Moreover, we are approaching 2025 - a significant milestone in the EAEU history, as this year is the deadline for completing the formation of common markets for gas, oil and petroleum products, electricity, a common financial market, a common transport space, a coordinated agro-industrial policy,” the president said.
“It is already at our doorstep. Of course, we are facing certain challenges. There is no escaping that. Even the Soviet Union experienced difficulties, and those difficulties were quite serious! They became particularly obvious after the collapse of the Soviet Union. No big project can proceed smoothly. At the same time, the public should see progress and results of our work,” Aleksandr Lukashenko said.
Taking advantage of the opportunity, he congratulated the participants of the meeting on the 30th anniversary of the CIS, which is celebrated this year, and asked to convey an invitation to the heads of the Commonwealth countries to visit Belarus on 15 October to participate in the CIS Heads of State Council meeting that will be timed to this anniversary. “We should meet here. It was here where, unfortunately, our former leaders put an end to the Soviet Union. Maybe, we will go on an excursion to Belovezhskaya Pushcha. I am ready to welcome you there. This place has not changed. We take good care of it. Many journalists signed up to film those locations in the run-up to the 30th anniversary. We are open, go ahead and do it, even though I stay there sometimes. If I invited you on a tour to this place and were a guide myself, I would tell you a lot of interesting things. Maybe certain things are not for journalists. I would tell you how everything happened there, how the leaders behaved and how easily, with one stroke of a pen they destroyed this great country, a center of power that was involved in addressing all issues,” the president said.
“However, that was yesterday. Today, there are sovereign independent states in this space. Do not shout at each other saying that someone wants to incorporate, pressurize, absorb someone ... Listen, the world has changed. There are no idiots among us who would try to enslave a friendly state in a colonial manner. This is impossible today. Any attempt to take over another state or to incorporate it by force will be met with a strong response in this state. There are a lot of ill-wishes wanting to add fuel to the flame today. Therefore, it is necessary to accept the existing state of things de facto and de jure. With this in mind, we need to move forward keeping what we have and integrating on new principles, in new conditions - as time requires,” Aleksandr Lukashenko concluded.
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