Opinions & Interviews

Lukashenko: Living under sanctions is the price of independence

An archive photo

MINSK, 18 December (BelTA) – Living under sanctions is the price of the independence of the Belarusian state, Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko said in his Address to the Belarusian People and Parliament during the second session of the 7th Belarusian People’s Congress on 18 December, BelTA has learned.

"We have our own path, free of illusions. We have lived under political and economic pressure throughout our sovereign history. This is the price of independence. Since the collapse of the USSR, we have endured this pressure. Yet we continue to work and find ways out of this situation, focusing on external markets. China, India, Russia, the countries of Asia, Africa, and Latin America make up the global majority. And we are part of that majority, whether some like it or not," the Belarusian leader said.

He added that today the economic balance is shifting decisively in favor of the countries of the Global East and South, and Belarus is integrated into this system. "The future belongs to associations such as BRICS and the SCO, where we are welcomed and gladly received," the president emphasized.

Aleksandr Lukashenko spoke about a number of major highest-level agreements that have been reached in many countries. In distant countries, there is remarkable demand for Belarusian products.

“Both the government and the Foreign Affairs Ministry must be fully engaged, especially our foreign missions. We need to work hard. But dialogue must be conducted on equal footing. There are no smaller or larger nations, no weaker or stronger ones. Every nation is a nation,” the head of state stressed.

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