Belarussian President Comes Out in favor of Good Relations with Western States

While speaking on Saturday to journalists during his visit to the Khatyn memorial complex Belarussian President Aleksander Lukashenko came out in favor of establishing good relations with Western states "the more so as positive signals are coming in from the West." According to him, Western states understood that "the European Union had to have good friends along its perimeter, first of all Moldova, Ukraine and Belarus." Irrespective of the situation, the Belarussian leader stated, intensification of relations with Western Europe would depend to a greater extent on the normalization of relations between Belarus and the US. Lukashenko stated that in connection with that the Belarussian side appointed its former foreign minister as Belarussian ambassador to the US.

Lukashenko indicated that relations between Belarus and the USA were spoilt not because of Belarus. Aleksander Lukashenko stated that it did not "matter whether somebody likes Belarussian laws or not. These are Belarussian laws, Belarussian leadership and this should be respected." He stressed that Belarus would treat Western states with great respect and understanding.