Ryzhenkov at meeting of Belarus and Russia MFA: security must be the same for everyone

A meeting of the boards of the Belarusian and Russian Foreign Ministries is taking place in Moscow.

As Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov noted, Moscow holds events of this format only with Belarusian partners, demonstrating an unprecedentedly high level of coordination between Belarus and Russia. Sergey Lavrov also emphasized that Moscow and Minsk are in solidarity on the overwhelming majority of international issues, which is reflected in various forums: from the CSTO to the SCO and BRICS. The countries mutually and actively support each other's political initiatives.

Sergey Lavrov, Russian Foreign Minister:

"As I already mentioned, we jointly promoted Alexander Grigoryevich Lukashenko's (President of Belarus – editor's note) initiative to develop a Eurasian Charter of Diversity and Multipolarity in the 21st Century at all international forums. This is in line with Russian President Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin's initiative to create a new architecture of equal and indivisible security in Eurasia. We actively helped ensure the success of the Third Minsk International Conference on Eurasian Security in October of this year and are pleased to note the expanding circle of countries that share our approaches and are ready to join in this work."

The dynamically developing relations between Belarus and Russia aim not only to promote the joint development of the two countries but also to resolve regional issues.

"While Europe is choosing a course toward militarization, border closure, and sanctions, we, together with our Russian colleagues, are building a fundamentally new model – a security architecture based on mutual trust and allied commitments," stated Belarusian Foreign Minister Maxim Ryzhenkov. "In this context, our joint work to strengthen trust and create a sustainable security architecture in our common Eurasian space is crucial. Our fundamental position remains unchanged: security must be common and indivisible for all."

The rapid development of so-called "walking distance diplomacy" was also noted. Over the past two years, six Belarusian embassy offices in Russia have been transformed into consulates general (in Vladivostok, Kaliningrad, and Nizhny Novgorod). A Belarusian diplomatic mission is planned to open in Voronezh by the end of this year. This process, Maxim Ryzhenkov emphasized, is bilateral. In Belarus, there are plans to open branches of the Russian embassy in Vitebsk, Gomel, and Mogilev.