Meeting with European Commissioner for European Neighborhood Policy and Enlargement Negotiations Johannes Hahn
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Belarus is interested in tighter cooperation with the West in a number of areas, Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko said as he met with European Commissioner for European Neighborhood Policy and Enlargement Negotiations Johannes Hahn on 17 April.
The Belarusian head of state pointed out that Belarus and the European Union have been having quite an intensive dialogue recently. New directions and interests in the bilateral cooperation have emerged.
In particular, according to the President, Belarus is interested in tighter cooperation with the European Union in the area of technologies, primarily civilian ones, and in the advancement of economic contacts. According to the Belarusian leader, economy should be the foundation of any relations and cooperation. Aleksandr Lukashenko remarked that security, particularly security in Eastern Europe, has come to the forefront. Apart from that, cooperation in suppressing transboundary crimes is important. The President stressed that Belarus makes a substantial contribution to the efforts meant to prevent drugs and nuclear substances from reaching Europe. “I hope this direction will be viewed more and more topical in the near future,” the Belarusian head of state said.
The President suggested discussing the European Union’s vision of prospects of cooperation with Belarus. “I am most of all interested in correcting or possibly remodeling our policy with regard to the European Union in the future,” Aleksandr Lukashenko stressed.
The President believes that the European Union should determine several avenues of cooperation with the Eurasian Economic Union.
“If someone in Europe believes that they can go on not noticing this association, it is a bad decision. Many countries across the globe take an interest in it, particularly Asian ones. I think that the European Union could do with more knowledge about the main trends going on in the Eurasian Economic Union. The European Union could start building relations with this large market today,” Aleksandr Lukashenko said. The President believes that it is necessary to implement the initiative that envisages global cooperation from Lisbon to Vladivostok.
“I think we will see our military political blocs maintaining contacts somehow and maybe cooperating in the future,” Aleksandr Lukashenko noted referring to NATO and the CSTO.
Speaking about Belarus’ participation in the Eastern Partnership Initiative, the President remarked that Belarus is in favor of reformatting the Eastern Partnership in the future. It would be good to refocus the EaP from politics (probably, this stage is already behind us) to closer concrete cooperation in economy, the Belarusian head of state said.
It is important that the partnership should not be directed against anyone. It should be for the sake of cooperation, the President said and explained that he is referring to the relations with Russia, the People’s Republic of China. “We are developing this dimension in order to improve people’s lives and to ensure security in the European continent,” the Belarusian leader added.
The Belarusian head of state pointed out that Belarus and the European Union have been having quite an intensive dialogue recently. New directions and interests in the bilateral cooperation have emerged.
In particular, according to the President, Belarus is interested in tighter cooperation with the European Union in the area of technologies, primarily civilian ones, and in the advancement of economic contacts. According to the Belarusian leader, economy should be the foundation of any relations and cooperation. Aleksandr Lukashenko remarked that security, particularly security in Eastern Europe, has come to the forefront. Apart from that, cooperation in suppressing transboundary crimes is important. The President stressed that Belarus makes a substantial contribution to the efforts meant to prevent drugs and nuclear substances from reaching Europe. “I hope this direction will be viewed more and more topical in the near future,” the Belarusian head of state said.
The President suggested discussing the European Union’s vision of prospects of cooperation with Belarus. “I am most of all interested in correcting or possibly remodeling our policy with regard to the European Union in the future,” Aleksandr Lukashenko stressed.
The President believes that the European Union should determine several avenues of cooperation with the Eurasian Economic Union.
“If someone in Europe believes that they can go on not noticing this association, it is a bad decision. Many countries across the globe take an interest in it, particularly Asian ones. I think that the European Union could do with more knowledge about the main trends going on in the Eurasian Economic Union. The European Union could start building relations with this large market today,” Aleksandr Lukashenko said. The President believes that it is necessary to implement the initiative that envisages global cooperation from Lisbon to Vladivostok.
“I think we will see our military political blocs maintaining contacts somehow and maybe cooperating in the future,” Aleksandr Lukashenko noted referring to NATO and the CSTO.
Speaking about Belarus’ participation in the Eastern Partnership Initiative, the President remarked that Belarus is in favor of reformatting the Eastern Partnership in the future. It would be good to refocus the EaP from politics (probably, this stage is already behind us) to closer concrete cooperation in economy, the Belarusian head of state said.
It is important that the partnership should not be directed against anyone. It should be for the sake of cooperation, the President said and explained that he is referring to the relations with Russia, the People’s Republic of China. “We are developing this dimension in order to improve people’s lives and to ensure security in the European continent,” the Belarusian leader added.