December was rich in international visits of various levels. China, the Emirates, Equatorial Guinea, and Kenya – this was the geography of the recent trips of the Head of State, Alexander Lukashenko.

December was rich in international visits of various levels. China, the Emirates, Equatorial Guinea, and Kenya – this was the geography of the recent trips of the Head of State, Alexander Lukashenko.

The President's speech at the World Climate Change Summit in the UAE was significant. The Belarusian leader identified the root causes of the existing climate threat: "First of all, it is the lack of a sense of proportion in the pursuit of geopolitical, including military (I would say, primarily military), superiority by those who provoke and ignite hotbeds of war in various corners of the planet."

After the events of 2022, the world began to wake up, and now it sees other opportunities, notes Igor Martynov, Deputy Chairman of the Standing Commission on National Security of the House of Representatives of the National Assembly of the Republic of Belarus. For example, African and Asian countries no longer find the position of backwardness suitable. However, after the collapse of the Soviet Union, they came under the significant influence of EU and US countries, and in fact, they had no control or management over their own affairs at home. The situation has changed.

Our country has always been a proponent of peaceful ideas and the development of economic relations, emphasizes the deputy. The containment policy of hegemons and the fear of sanctions are becoming a thing of the past. On the sidelines of the summit, Alexander Lukashenko held meetings with leaders of various states, including African countries: Kenya, Ethiopia, Zimbabwe, Mozambique... And then he visited Equatorial Guinea and Kenya.

-- The speech of our Head of State at the summit caused a heated discussion, noted Igor Martynov. -- Let me remind you of the words of former French President Jacques Chirac 15 years ago: "Without Africa, France will sink to the rank of a third-world country." The other day, news emerged: Mali and Niger terminated agreements on tax and administrative cooperation with France. Moving out from under Paris's political control, they are revoking the unequal agreements that France imposed on them. By the way, experts have calculated that over the past 60 years, France has received about 500 billion dollars from 14 African countries. But that is in the past.

The expert noted that today there is great interest in Equatorial Guinea, a country with developed oil and mining industries. More than 90 percent