‘Russia is a guardian angel for Belarus’ - Lukashenka


On August 30, Belarusian president Alyaksandr Lukashenka has met with Russian Ambassador Alexander Surikov who is finishing his 12-year diplomatic mission in Belarus.

“Russia is a guardian angel for Belarus. The same is true about Belarus in respect to Russia. The size of the territory does not matter here,” state-run news agency BelTA quotes him.

According to Lukashenka, Russians and Belarusians are of the same roots. The interests of the two countries may be different but they have never been contrary to each other, he stressed.

“We are the peoples of the same Slavic blood. And there was an attempt to divide our brotherhood, and such attempts keep happening, but our task is to prevent them… When I arrived in Belarus, 46 % of Belarusians were for being in union with Russia, and 39% were for an alliance with Europe. Now the figures are 65% and about 20%, respectively,” Surikov said.

The Belarusian leader expressed gratitude to the Russian envoy for his work and gave him a wood-carved map of Belarus as a present.

A few days ago, Russian President Vladimir Putin signed a decree, appointing Presidential Envoy to the Volga Federal District Mikhail Babich as Russia’s Ambassador to Belarus and Special Presidential Envoy for Trade and Economic Cooperation with Belarus.

belsat.eu

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