Sergei Naryshkin: Russia ready to cooperate with new president of Belarus

Sergei Naryshkin, Head of the Administration of the President of Russia was fiercely critical of the Belarusian regime.

Belarusian journalists were invited to the press-conference in the Kremlin on October 13. For the first time charter97.org website has been invited to the press conference of the leadership of Russia as well.

At the beginning of the press-conference Sergei Naryshkin, Head of the Administration of the President of Russia, noted that he had been forced to organize the event “by a concern over the Belarusian-Russian relations.”

“We still think Belarus is our most reliable partner and ally, and count upon deepening and development of cooperation. But it is important for the cooperation have mutually beneficial and partner character.” It is especially painful for us to state that unsubstantiated accusations against Russia are heard from Minsk, and they have intensified in the period of the election campaign. The Belarusian authorities are charging Russia with termination of the union building, though many large tasks in the framework of the union state have not been completed because of an undue approach of the Belarusian side. This year we have decided to transit to a universal economic principle in the relations with Russia, though Russia continued to help Belarus by preferential prices for energy resources. As a result, reproaches turned into a real invectives and even insults. An example of that is the last press-conference of Lukashenka for Russian mass media. It is not only a question of deteriorating the atmosphere of cooperation. These are attempts to rupture the ties that had been created to years, and to drive a wedge between our countries. In such a way in the run-up to the presidential elections the Belarusian authorities are trying to justify their own economic mistakes,” Sergei Naryshkin stated.

The head of Dmitry Medvedev’s administration has enumerated these economic blunders of the Belarusian authorities: despite of the general growth of the GDP, about one forth of Belarusian enterprises are working “for stock”; the competitive environment is not developed; the private sector of economy remains too narrow.

To the question of charter97.org website: “It is obvious to everyone today, both for Belarusians and for the rest of the world, that Lukashenka, who has lost the support of the nation, would go the length of rigging the upcoming presidential election’s results. How Russia is set to respond to that?” – Sergei Naryshkin stated:

“Undoubtedly, we are not indifferent to who will become the president of Belarus, as such an event as the presidential election is a crucial one. At the same time, it is a purely internal affair of Belarus, which choice would be done by the Belarusian nation. Our attitude is to not to depend on who would be chosen by the Belarusian nation, but by the degree of conformity of the election campaign and the elections to the standards of the Belarusian and international law.”

The head of Dmitry Medvedev’s administration has also stated that the Russian authorities are concerned by abductions and murders of opposition leaders and independent journalists in Belarus.

“If Russia had not brought up this issue before, it does not mean that we are not concerned by this question. We were concerned by it always, and we are greatly concern by it now,” Naryshkin said.

Speaking about the Belarusian opposition, the head of Medvedev’s administration stated that “any government, including the leadership of Belarus, should reckon with opposition.” The politician noted that contacts of the Kremlin with Belarusian democrats are possible.

The politician has also noted that he saw parts of the much talked-of film by NTV channel, “Godbatka”:

“Journalists’ patience has snapped, and they decided to conduct their own journalistic investigation.”

Answering to the question whether the point of no-return in the relations between Belarus and Russia had been passed, Syarhei Naryshkin answered:

“It is important for us to make the Belarusian leadership understand harmfulness of this anti-Russian policy, and also realized harmfulness and lameness of their policy towards the county and people of Belarus. Out mutual relations have always been channeled by the interests of the Belarusian nation.”

The Head of the Administration of the President of Russia has stated that he knows about all presidential aspirants in Belarus and is convinced that “most Belarusian electors would vote not only for a concrete candidate, but also for his political course aimed at cooperation between Belarus and Russia.”

Answering the question of charter97.org whether Russia is ready to build new relations of partnership with a new president of Belarus, Sergei Naryshkin said:

“Russia is ready for the widest cooperation with a new president of Belarus in the spirit of partnership and openness.”