Close cooperation between Minsk and Moscow, prerequisite for successful overcoming of global challenges and threats

30 years of close friendship and cooperation. Belarus and Russia are celebrating a jubilee date for the establishment of diplomatic ties. Today they are of a truly strategic nature. Minsk and Moscow are not merely neighbors and partners but allies in all spheres of life, from economy to defense and security. Moreover, they are committed to the policy of deepening cooperation. It is set forth in the Union State Treaty. Belarus and Russia have been working on it for more than 20 years. This is the closest integration in the CIS territory. In addition, our countries stood at the origins of the Eurasian Economic Union. The development of the association, the creation of equal conditions for business, enterprises and people, and the removal of barriers to the movement of goods and services are foreign policy priorities for Minsk and Moscow.

Russia is our main trade and economic partner. It accounts for more than half of foreign supplies. Following the results of last year, the volume of mutual trade between our countries was $40 billion. It is the maximum over the last nine years! As far as Russia's foreign trade partners are concerned, Belarus is in the top five and the first among the CIS countries.

Close and open interaction of the allies makes it possible to find a consensus on all the issues on the bilateral agenda. In the current circumstances it is also possible to withstand political and economic external influences with dignity. The import substitution projects are just one example. Presidents of Belarus and Russia Alexander Lukashenko and Vladimir Putin exchanged congratulations on the 30th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between the two countries.

Message of the President of Belarus to the Russian leader

“Our countries have come a long way together, laid a solid foundation for a comprehensive strategic partnership and deepened integration. For the two peoples, the orientation towards close and fruitful cooperation is a natural process predetermined by the geographical proximity of the two peoples, by their unbreakable cultural and spiritual ties which have been built up over centuries, by their common heroic past. I am convinced that strengthening of the constructive interaction between Minsk and Moscow both within the framework of the Union State and as part of other interstate organizations creates the necessary conditions for successful overcoming of global challenges and threats.”

Vladimir Putin addressed Alexander Lukashenko

Vladimir Putin has also addressed warm words to the Belarusian leader. “Guided by the good traditions of brotherly friendship which have been linking our peoples for a long time, over the past decades we have managed to do a lot to develop interstate relations in the spirit of alliance and good neighbourliness. We have accumulated considerable experience of effective bilateral cooperation in a variety of areas. Today we continue to systematically build up the integration interaction within the framework of the Union State, we work together with partners in the CSTO to enhance our defence capabilities. Coordination between Moscow and Minsk in the Eurasian Economic Union and the Commonwealth of Independent States is yielding good results.”