Lukashenko: deeper integration between Belarus and Russia is possible only on equal terms
Belarus is ready to negotiate deeper integration with Russia only on equal terms, said President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko in an interview with the Belarusian TV and radio company Mir.
Lukashenko was asked how he sees the development of the Union State with Russia. In response, he said that “Minsk has never refused and does not refuse now any paragraph of the Treaty on the creation of the Union State and is ready to follow its provisions with the "iron concrete" observance of the principle of equality of conditions for people, businesses and states, which the treaty assumes”.
"If Russia today, having given up these imperial schemes (we are big and you are small), is ready for this, let's negotiate, let's be determined," he added.
Lukashenko also mentioned that the most serious issue currently being discussed in the context of deepening Russian-Belarusian integration is the single currency. According to him, Minsk does not object to its introduction if the currency is neutral.
On April 2, in a statement addressed to Russian President Vladimir Putin on the Day of Unity of the Peoples of Belarus and Russia, Lukashenko said that the integration of Belarus and Russia is expected to develop mutually acceptable solutions in the spirit of true alliance.