Kopyl regional executive committee

Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko has ordered to remove all travel barriers for citizens of Lithuania and Latvia who want to visit Belarus. This matter was discussed at the meeting with representatives of the government and the Belarus President Administration, BelTA has learned.

The president discussed Belarus' visa waiver for citizens of Lithuania and Latvia that was extended until the end of 2022.

Aleksandr Lukashenko gave an instruction to remove travel barriers and restrictions for residents of these neighboring countries. The head of state decided to cancel the requirement to present the negative PCR test result while entering Belarus.

A reminder, taking into account positive feedback and numerous requests of foreign nationals, the Belarusian head of state decided to extend until 2023 the visa waiver for citizens of Lithuania and Latvia.

Written by belta.by

Belarus need to step up work to counter the information warfare, Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko said at a meeting in the Defense Ministry of Belarus to discuss military security issues on 26 May, BelTA has learned.

"In terms of information counteraction, we have been working on this front. I will not say that we have achieved great successes here, but we cannot do without information support of the work that we, the military, are doing in the country today. It's not the future, it's the present. And we are somewhat lagging behind," Aleksandr Lukashenko said.

The head of state urged to strengthen the work on information counteraction because military operations in the modern world are complex. "This is an economic war, an information war, and a hot war. These are hybrid wars. Therefore, we need to step up work across all areas, no matter how difficult it may be," the president outlined the tasks.

Written by belta.by

Countries of the Eurasian Economic Union should simply unite and act as one. Belarus President Aleksandr Lukashenko made the statement at a session of the Supreme Eurasian Economic Council on 27 May, BelTA has learned.

Aleksandr Lukashenko stressed: “Our session is taking place in complicated geopolitical and economic conditions. We've managed to successfully ameliorate problems on the currency and financial market. However, the pressure of sanctions is not getting weaker but, on the contrary, it seems to be getting stronger.”

The head of state noted that due to the global nature of economy and since Russia is a major trade and economic partner for Eurasian Economic Union countries, all the members of the union will be affected by the sanctions to a varying degree.

“This is why we cannot stay idle. I say it again to those, who think that problems will go away of their own accord and they will be able to sit this one out. We simply have to unite and act together. It is obvious that everyone needs it and there is no other way if we are to preserve our statehood, our union, and if we truly think about the wellbeing of our nations,” the president stated.

According to Aleksandr Lukashenko, the steps the countries have taken already confirm it. In particular, it is true for the promptly taken decisions to bolster the stability of the economies of the countries.

Written by belta.by

Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko is set to outline his vision of the development of the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) at the meeting of the Supreme Eurasian Economic Council which is to be held online on 27 May, Chairman of the Board of the Eurasian Economic Commission Mikhail Miasnikovich said in an interview on BelTA's YouTube channel.

It was stated following the meeting between Aleksandr Lukashenko and Mikhail Myasnikovich on 19 May that the head of state introduced interesting and ambitious proposals on further development of Eurasian integration.

When asked to share the details of their talks, the chairman of the EEC Board said in the interview to BelTA: “I think we will witness directly the speech of esteemed Aleksandr Grigoriyevich Lukashenko at the meeting of the Supreme Eurasian Economic Council. So let us not get ahead of ourselves. The head of state will outline his vision himself. The only thing I can say is that the president believes in the Eurasian Economic Union and his ideas and proposals deserve attention and direct implementation within the framework of the Eurasian Economic Commission.”

Mikhail Myasnikovich added that there would probably be proposals on how to improve the work within the framework of the current treaty, primarily on the prospects for the business community in the union.

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Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko expressed confidence at the meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Sochi on 23 May that Belarus and Russia would successfully solve all the emerging security problems, BelTA has learned.

“You are right about the security issues, I support you here. We have a lot of problems. But we will be solving them. We are afraid of nothing. As they said in the old days, our cause is just and sooner or later we will win anyway,” the Belarusian leader stressed.

The head of state added that there was a lot to discuss in the security sector, especially in connection with NATO concentrating its troops on the western borders.

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Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko's message was handed over to UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres during a meeting between Belarus' Permanent Representative to the UN Valentin Rybakov and the UN secretary general on 18 May, BelTA learned from the press service of the Belarusian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The message highlighted the topic of European and international security amid the ongoing events in Ukraine.

Touching upon the historical context in his message, the head of state stressed that devastating wars had repeatedly rolled over the Belarusian lands, sowing horrific destruction and leading to huge casualties. It was this tragic historical experience, as the Belarusian president noted, that predetermined for the country its enduring value of a peaceful foreign policy.

Belarus has always advocated strengthening global and regional security, as evidenced by the country's numerous initiatives, including the so-called Helsinki-2 on the need for a broad international dialogue on security.

The message was also largely focused on the analysis of events in Ukraine. The head of state recalled Belarus' efforts to resolve the conflict in eastern Ukraine in 2014-2015, and also the initial stages of talks between Russia and Ukraine that took place on the territory of Belarus this year.

“The president clearly states in his message that Belarus is not an aggressor, as many in the West are trying to present us. We are not traitors either. Honesty and decency in relations are important for our country,” the ministry of foreign affairs stressed.

The head of state outlined specific steps that everyone in their role could take to end the conflict and prevent it from escalating into a global war. Priority ones among them were to refrain from the supply of weapons, information wars and various provocations.

The Belarusian president, of course, could not but mention the role of the UN in resolving the conflict. In particular, he welcomed the recent meetings of the UN secretary general in Kyiv and Moscow, and called on the head of the United Nations to organize meaningful contacts with other parties involved in the conflict, i.e. the United States and other Western countries. The head of state once again emphasized the importance of organizing a global and defining process on security issues with the participation of all leading international players in the spirit of San Francisco, thereby drawing parallels with the place where the UN Charter was signed in 1945.

In his message, the Belarusian president assured the UN secretary general that Belarus was ready for direct meetings and other steps in order to ensure peace and opportunities for life and development for future generations.

At the meeting with Valentin Rybakov Antonio Guterres spoke about the UN efforts to address the problem of food security and the potential threat of global hunger.

It is known that the UN secretary general is already actively involved in this process. In particular, in early May, Antonio Guterres, speaking at the UN Security Council, stressed the need to reintegrate food and fertilizers from Belarus and Russia into world markets in order to reduce the growing problem of food insecurity in the world. During the UN Security Council meeting on food security, the UN secretary general once again drew the attention of the world community to this problem and called for lifting restrictions on fertilizers from Belarus and Russia.

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Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko is on a working visit to the Russian Federation. The Belarusian head of state is set to hold talks with his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin in Sochi on 23 May, BelTA has learned.

The two leaders reached an agreement on arranging a full-scale meeting on the sidelines of the CSTO summit in Moscow on 16 May.

Aleksandr Lukashenko and Vladimir Putin are expected to discuss the entire range of matters of Belarusian-Russian cooperation and the fulfillment of previous instructions by the two governments.

At the meeting with Governor of Russia's Nizhny Novgorod Oblast Gleb Nikitin on 19 May Aleksandr Lukashenko said that he planned to discuss import substitution matter with Vladimir Putin, adding that this was number one issue for the two economies under the current conditions.

“We have discussed the matter with the president of Russia quite recently. We will soon meet again to discuss these issues. We have already looked at what programs we need to implement. We have calculated how much money we will need on them. I have to tell you that this is not much compared to the huge machine we have in Belarus and Russia [the economies of the two countries in general],” Aleksandr Lukashenko said.

In his words, the governments of Belarus and Russia have already been instructed to deal with this issue, and the presidents are going to discuss how these instructions are fulfilled during an upcoming meeting. “We have agreed with Vladimir Vladimirovich [Putin] to sit down and have a look. We have the program. It is the most important program for us and for Russia,” stressed Aleksandr Lukashenko.

Besides, the two leaders are expected to discuss industrial cooperation: “We should decide: if we, for example, can produce good harvesters, we should unite with Rostselmash and compete with foreign models, not with each other. We should not repeat the past experience,” the Belarusian leader said.

According to the president, efficient cooperation with Russia is based on strong economic and interaction ties: “If we have these competences, then we should focus on them and link the economies this way”.

Aleksandr Lukashenko stressed that Belarus and Russia are developing cooperation as two independent states, and the Union State integration issue should be approached step by step. “Then we will not have to shout that we urgently need a single currency, a single parliament, as if it were the main thing,” he said. “No, they keep agitating people here and there, saying that someone loses its independence, being taken over by others. Such tendencies are already in place. As if we had nothing else to do today! We cooperate as two independent states, don't we? We cooperate in every possible area,” said the head of state.

Written by: belta.by

The country's future is in the hands of young Belarusians, and they must preserve their country, Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko said as he met with activists of Belarus' pioneer organization on 20 May to mark the 100th anniversary of the pioneer movement, BelTA has learned.

Belarus and Russia are going to step up efforts to substitute imports in the face of the sanctions pressure, Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko said as he met with Nizhny Novgorod Oblast Governor Gleb Nikitin, BelTA has learned.

Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko has extended birthday greetings to Kazakhstan President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, BelTA learned from the press service of the Belarusian leader.