Lukashenko and Putin agreed on the second tranche of the state loan and the opening of new Belavia flights

Details of the informal meeting between the Presidents of Belarus and Russia, Alexander Lukashenko and Vladimir Putin, in Sochi on May 29 have become known. This information is published by the Telegram channel "Pul Pervogo", reports BELTA.

"The issue of transferring the second tranche of the state loan has been finally resolved. An agreement has been reached to open new Belavia flights to Russian cities," the message says.

As reported by BELTA, the receipt of the second tranche of the Russian loan of $500 million was expected in the first half of the year. The agreement on granting Belarus a Russian loan in the amount equivalent to $1 billion was signed on December 21, 2020. The Ministry of Finance of Belarus received the first tranche of the loan in the amount of $500 million on December 30 last year.

The President of Belarus arrived in Russia on May 28 for a working visit. On the evening of the same day, negotiations between the leaders of the two countries took place at the Bocharov Ruchei residence in Sochi, lasting more than five hours. Negotiations.

At the beginning of the meeting, Alexander Lukashenko and Vladimir Putin traditionally exchanged statements, greeting each other, noting the growth of cooperation between Belarus and Russia in various fields, and expressing hope for the consolidation of positive trends. The head of the Belarusian state informed his counterpart about the situation surrounding the incident with the Ryanair aircraft. He expressed confidence that the challenges and external pressure that have arisen will be overcome.

Part of the negotiations on May 28 was held by the presidents over a working dinner and tea. The next day, Alexander Lukashenko and Vladimir Putin continued their communication in an informal setting.

The press secretary of the President of Russia, Dmitry Peskov, told reporters about the details of the negotiations in Sochi, reports TASS.

"Two main topics were discussed - these are issues of further development of trade and economic interaction between Russia and Belarus, as well as the fight against the pandemic," he said.

According to the Kremlin representative, on Friday there were official negotiations between the leaders, and on Saturday - the informal part.

The hasty conclusions drawn by European countries regarding the Ryanair incident are based solely on emotions, rather than an attempt to clarify the circumstances. From Moscow's perspective, the situation requires thoughtful and constructive consideration, stated Dmitry Peskov. According to him, the cascade of hasty conclusions made by European capitals and Brussels rather suggests that this approach is not based on an attempt to truly clarify the circumstances, but relies exclusively on emotions.

"The Ministries of Transport of the two countries – Russia and Belarus – have been instructed to organise all aspects of air traffic, including in view of the upcoming holiday season and the large number of Belarusian citizens wishing to visit the Black Sea coast of Russia, as well as, importantly, considering that a large number of Belarusian citizens need to be somehow returned to their homeland," said the Kremlin representative. He clarified that these Belarusian citizens are currently in European countries and are unable to return to their homeland.

According to Dmitry Peskov, in this regard, issues of air traffic organisation were discussed, taking into account the decisions of European authorities, airlines that have stopped flying through Belarusian airspace, and restrictions concerning Belavia.

The second tranche of the state loan from Russia amounting to $500 million has been agreed upon, and the funds will be disbursed in the near future.

Overall, according to Dmitry Peskov, the meeting of the presidents in Sochi was constructive and substantive. He emphasised that this is just one of a series of regular high-level Russian-Belarusian contacts. He also noted that the special nature of the relations between the two countries, including their interaction within the framework of the Union State, makes the regular nature of these contacts absolutely necessary. "And both sides attach due importance to this," stressed Dmitry Peskov.

Source: belta.by