BELARUS NEWS AND ANALYSIS

DATE:

23/05/2009

Belarus President blasts Russia for blocking agreements

Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko on Friday blasted Russia, saying it is to blame for blocking the previously reached agreements to form a "union state" aimed at bringing the two countries closer together, Gazeta.ru reports.

Moscow has had a formal alliance agreement with Belarus and has sought to create a customs union with it and Kazakhstan.

"Everything that we agreed, that we discussed at the supreme state council, the appropriate documents that we signed -- all of this has been blocked," the official BelTA news agency cited Lukashenko as saying.

"If we are going to be blocking each other on such issues and Russia starts denying us access to its markets, then who needs this so-called integration process? "The presidents take decisions, and the Russian government fails [to implement them]," Lukashenko stressed.

"I am not guilty of the fact that this integration (with Russia) has not moved forward and that we are developing ties with the West, entering the Eastern Partnership.... What else could we do?" Interfax is quoting Lukashenko as questioning.

Lukashenko said Belarus was counting on the EU partnership plan for badly-needed investment in the country's Soviet-era infrastructure.

"We would like to get what are we are counting on in the Eastern Partnership. Concretely that means roads, pipelines, infrastructure projects," president's press department release says.

His comments came ahead of an expected trip by Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin to Minsk scheduled for May 28.

Belarus president appears to have specifically blamed Russia's prime minister Vladimir Putin for reneging on the previous agreements while not holding anything against President Dmitry Medvedev, Gazeta.ru notes.

Source:

http://www.mosnews.com/politics/2009/05/23/1891/

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