Russian President Vladimir Putin and Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko. File photoMOSCOW, June 25Russian President Vladimir Putin and Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko will discuss the development of relations between the two countries and integration processes at a meeting in St. Petersburg on Saturday. processes. According to the press secretary of the President of the Russian Federation Dmitry Peskov, the official part of the conversation will take place in the Konstantinovsky Palace. On Thursday and Friday, the presidents had an informal meeting in Zavidovo, which was interrupted by Putin's speech at the fourteenth BRICS summit via video conference. Earlier, Lukashenko said that in the near future he will discuss the situation in Ukraine with Putin, including in connection with the recent visit to Kyiv of German Chancellor Olaf Scholz, French President Emmanuel Macron and Italian Prime Minister Mario Draghi. In 2022, Russia and Belarus celebrate the 30th anniversary of establishing diplomatic relations.
Lukashenko said that the Belarusian economy will withstand sanctions The document approves 28 union programs to deepen the economic integration of the two countries. As Prime Minister of the Russian Federation Mikhail Mishustin stated during a recent working visit to Minsk, Russia and Belarus have already completed more than a third of the activities within the framework of 28 integration programs, while the republic predicts an increase in the list of such projects. Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu called Belarus the closest friend and ally of Russia and noted the unprecedented pressure from the West, under which bilateral military cooperation is developing. He stated the need to strengthen the defense capability of the Union State in the current circumstances and stressed that the Russian side is ready to provide «any support to Belarusian friends» in this.In Minsk, they announced a hybrid war of the West against Belarus and RussiaAt a meeting with his Belarusian counterpart in May this year in Sochi, Putin said that the construction of the Union State is going «calmly, without any haste», every step is being verified in order to strengthen Russia and Belarus, create a fundamental basis for the economic development of countries. He also said more than once that the countries are not just close neighbors and partners, but truly fraternal peoples. Lukashenka emphasized that Belarus and Russia are developing cooperation as two independent states, and said that it is necessary to move forward in stages on the issue of union integration . He argued that Minsk and Moscow together would be able to give a worthy response to modern challenges, and noted that Belarus would «support Russia in every possible way.» In an interview with the Associated Press, Lukashenka called Putin his «big brother» and said that the Russian president has no «more friendly» relationship with any world leader than with him.
Lavrov spoke about supporting Belarus in 2020 April. However, an exception was made for the transit of goods to the Kaliningrad region. Now the ban announced by Lithuania applies to all cargo transit of goods subject to EU sanctions. Lithuanian Railways had earlier notified the Kaliningrad Railways of halting the transit of a number of goods subject to EU sanctions from June 18. Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said that Lithuania, having made such a decision, is acting aggressively and has gone beyond unfriendly lines. EU Ambassador to Russia Markus Ederer was summoned to the Foreign Ministry due to transit restrictions. The Russian side during the conversation demanded to immediately resume Kaliningrad transit, otherwise retaliatory measures would follow. The Lithuanian authorities deny the violation of the transit agreement. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg said that Lithuania, blocking the transit of a number of goods between Kaliningrad and the rest of Russia, is implementing sanctions against the Russian Federation. Governor of the Leningrad Region Alexander Drozdenko previously expressed the opinion that the priority option for providing Kaliningrad with the necessary cargo is the complete removal of restrictions on operation of the Suwalki transport corridor. This is a piece of territory near the city of Suwalki in northeastern Poland, which is located between Belarus and the Kaliningrad region of Russia, its length is about 100 kilometers. >Alikhanov, together with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, will seek to lift restrictions on the transit of goods. Difficulties with grain The situation in Ukraine, where Russia is conducting a special operation, caused talk of an impending global food crisis in the world. The West accuses Moscow of counteracting the supply of Ukrainian grain to world markets, while it categorically denies such accusations. At the same time, the Kyiv authorities themselves created many obstacles to the export of grain for export: in addition to the revealed arson of grain in the Mariupol port, Ukrainian troops carried out mining of the Black Sea, which does not allow grain to be transported to world markets by ships. Putin said that there were problems with the export of grain from Ukraine does not exist and Russia does not prevent it. If Ukraine clears the ports of mines, ships with grain will be able to leave without any problems, he said. According to the Russian leader, there are five or six options for the export of Ukrainian grain, the cheapest is through Belarus. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov also said that the easiest way to unblock the export of Ukrainian grain is through Belarus, while routes through Poland and Romania are more expensive. According to him, for this it is necessary to «provide all the logistics and financial chains.» At the same time, the representative of the European Commission Maya Bakran, speaking to members of the transport committee of the European Parliament, said that the European Union is not considering the option of exporting Ukrainian grain through Belarus. Washington believes that the Belarusian version is «extremely problematic, including because Russian troops are stationed there,» and suggests a route through Odessa. >Putin confirmed that Russia is ready to ensure the transportation of Ukrainian grainSupport under sanctionsMinsk's support for the Russian military special operation to demilitarize Ukraine, which began on February 24 this year, caused a new round of sanctions against Belarus. Lukashenka stated that the countries of the West, pursuing the sanctions policy, pushed Belarus and Russia to more intensive development. He is convinced that the industry of the two countries has the potential to produce almost any product, but in some industries it is necessary to improve the quality so that it is at the world level, and this will take time. However, according to him, barriers on the external circuit have affected all stages of the production process in the republic: the purchase of raw materials and materials, transportation, settlements, finance, credit support, export. In June, Lukashenka announced that, in accordance with agreements with Putin, Moscow would allocate $1.5 billion for Minsk's participation in import substitution programs. As State Secretary of the Union State Dmitry Mezentsev reported to RIA Novosti, the level of interaction between the Russian Federation and Belarus allows us to expect that Minsk's request for Moscow's support in the implementation of priority socio-economic programs for the republic will be supported.
Lukashenko demanded to work more actively on the topic of import substitution
