Former Prime Minister: Enough Living On Freebies

We must forget about cheap Russian oil and gas forever.

The official Minsk sees no reason to work on “roadmaps” to deepen integration with Russia until issues with oil supplies to the country are resolved, Belarusian Foreign Minister Uladzimir Makei told reporters.

“Let's solve the issue of oil supplies, and then we will think further,” said the head of the Foreign Ministry. “The working group (on the integration of Belarus and Russia ) is not working now, and it makes no sense to deal with these “road maps” until these issues are resolved.”

Former Prime Minister of Belarus Mikhail Chyhir commented on the statement by the Belarusian Foreign Minister, for the Radio Racyja website:

- At this stage, Belarus does not need any in-depth integration. Look what is happening recently in relations between Russia and Belarus. Dairy, meat, oil and gas wars. Continuous scandals, permanent sticks to the wheels from Russia. Countries that are hostile to each other are in a better relationship than these “allies.” Therefore, what kind of integration can we talk about? Let us first understand today's problems, and then we need to move somewhere further.

- Nevertheless, everyone understands that Russia badly wants to have one more province ...

- This should not even be discussed. Therefore, we must forget about cheap Russian oil and gas forever, so that Moscow no longer blackmail us. Enough living on freebies! It is necessary to adapt to new conditions of existence, and live the way many other countries live. And in many cases they live pretty well. It’s not even a very decent thing to live off another country, and free cheese, as you know, can be found only in a mousetrap.