BELARUS NEWS AND ANALYSIS

DATE:

13/06/2007

Reports Say Belarus Rejects Russia's Choice For CIS Chief

June 13, 2007 -- Russian media report that Belarusian President Alyaksandr Lukashenka has rejected Moscow's choice of Aleksandr Veshnyakov as Executive Secretary of the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS).

Citing unidentified sources, the Russian daily newspapers "Kommersant" and "Vedomosti" reported today that Russia did not put forth Veshnyakov's candidacy at a CIS summit in St. Petersburg on June 9-10 due to objections from Belarus.

A spokesman for Lukashenka, Pavel Lyohki, would neither confirm nor deny the reports.

(Belapan, kommersant.ru, vedomosti.ru)

Source:

http://www.rferl.org/featuresarticle/2007/6/31e22cab-2c97-4df1-9b46-e2385cf853f6.html