Events

MINSK, 8 April (BelTA) – Belarus is not afraid that a Ukrainian scenario may happen in the country. Belarusian Minister of Foreign Affairs Vladimir Makei made the relevant statement in the latest interview with the Euronews TV channel, BelTA has learned.

Asked whether Belarus should be afraid of a repeat of the Ukrainian scenario in the country, Vladimir Makei said: “I don’t think so. The Ukrainian government made many errors in the past, producing such a situation as a result. We are not afraid of a Ukrainian scenario implementation in Belarus. We are slightly different from Ukrainians and will never let the situation that existed in Ukraine happen here.”

Vladimir Makei noted that Belarus maintains good relations with Russia. “If any problems emerge, we discuss them openly with Russian partners. We try to find political solutions to these problems instead of military ones. I don’t think Russia would want to organize something in Belarus along the lines of the Ukrainian scenario. It would not suit their interests. Even discussing such hypothetical things seems absurd to me,” said the Belarusian minister of foreign affairs.

Vladimir Makei stated that certain problems are sometimes encountered in economic cooperation with Russian partners. Such problems are often artificial.

“We would like to get rid of our dependence on one country. We are intent on diversifying the relations, including by means of bolstering ties with the European Union and the rest of the world. It is particularly important in crisis situations, for example, during a global financial crisis. It is important to have the so-called safety cushion for the state. It can be done by maintaining balanced relations with different countries in order to avoid dependence on one country. We are working on it. We are moving towards accomplishing this goal although slowly,” noted the official.

“Certainly, we are still dependent on Russia. Russia accounts for nearly 48% of our trade. The European Union accounts for 26%, with the share of the rest of the world at 26%. But these figures were totally different in the past. The situation is changing now. We are improving these figures, getting closer to a diversified economy. But we will continue working on creating good, normal economic relations with European countries and other countries of the world,” added Vladimir Makei.