Meeting with delegation of United States Congress

Belarus’ interest in advancing its relations with the United States of America remains unchanged. Belarus President Aleksandr Lukashenko made the statement as he met with a delegation of the U.S. Congress on 6 July.

Aleksandr Lukashenko said: “Our interest in advancing full-value partnership relations with the USA remains unchanged. In the last 2-3 years we restored a certain level of political trust. It would have been impossible without a mutual desire. I believe that the previous decade, during which we lived with uncertainty and sanctions, is a period of lost opportunities as far as our relations are concerned. We are starting to recover from that state of affairs little by little. We are trying to advance cooperation with your country in the areas where our interests coincide.”

At the same time the head of state noted that Belarus is ready to hear out any proposals and remarks, even reasoned criticism from the USA. “We are also going to be very sincere in explaining our stance on the United States of America,” pointed out Aleksandr Lukashenko.

The 26^th summer session of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE PA) is in progress in Minsk. Aleksandr Lukashenko noted: “As far as I know, the U.S. delegation is the largest one. Hence, in addition to paying close attention to the OSCE PA work it is likely that the U.S. Congress shows interest in our country, too. After the election in November 2016 the leadership of your country focused on domestic affairs as expected, primarily economy and the social sphere. It is a natural thing to do. It is what every president has to do. Nevertheless, the foreign policy of the new presidential administration is gradually taking shape. I believe that in the near future Washington’s foreign policy approaches to Belarus will be formulated.”

Bearing this in mind, the visit of the large USA delegation becomes particularly important, noted Aleksandr Lukashenko. “It will allow us to sincerely discuss topical matters in our mutual relations. As members of the supreme legislative body of the United States of America you have been granted an opportunity to directly get familiar with our country, to make up your minds about Belarus, its people, the situation in the country and the region. You will be able to make your own conclusions on the basis of what you see and hear,” said the Belarusian leader. “I’d like to note that you will not run into any hindrances. You will be able to visit any place in the country, even restricted-access ones. We will organize all of that for you.”

The head of state noted that the two countries are now working on many common matters. Those include global and regional security, prevention of illegal transit of nuclear materials, fight against high-tech crimes, and interaction in science and culture.