February 12, Minsk /BELTA/. Cooperation between Belarus and Russia is traditionally aimed at creation and results. This opinion was expressed to a BELTA correspondent by Dmitry Golubnichy, an analyst at the Belarusian Institute for Strategic Research, commenting on the President's speech at the VI All-Belarusian People's Congress.
February 12, Minsk /BELTA/. Cooperation between Belarus and Russia is traditionally aimed at creation and results. This opinion was expressed to a BELTA correspondent by Dmitry Golubnichy, an analyst at the Belarusian Institute for Strategic Research, commenting on the President's speech at the VI All-Belarusian People's Congress.
"During the All-Belarusian People's Congress, the President reaffirmed the emphasis on strategic partnership, the interdependence of Belarus and Russia on issues of stability and security, commitment to the development of the Union State, and a shared vision of the future," said Dmitry Golubnichy. "Cooperation between Belarus and Russia is traditionally aimed at creation and results, which does not exclude a rich dialogue when coordinating positions."
Currently, according to the expert, the development of integration between Minsk and Moscow is being tested by similar processes: consolidated pressure from foreign partners using sanctions mechanisms, the consequences of the pandemic, and protest actions.
"On the bilateral track, the parties are focused on realizing priority interests: Belarus leverages Russia's potential to maintain strategic stability, while for Russia, Belarus is seen as the core of its strategy in the post-Soviet space, capable of influencing the attractiveness of integration projects, and is perceived as an important element of the security of the Union State in the western strategic direction," noted Dmitry Golubnichy. "Regarding cooperation with Russia, the theses of Alexander Lukashenko and Vladimir Makei (Minister of Foreign Affairs. - BELTA's note) emphasized the practical significance and inviolability of the principle of multi-vector foreign policy. It was noted that Belarus will not abandon multi-vector policy, as this principle is based on the desire to have balanced and diverse ties with the outside world, primarily economic. At the same time, multi-vector policy does not preclude the predominance of any particular vector."
The BISS analyst believes that the current political crisis has only increased the demand for a multi-vector foreign policy, which represents the only doctrinal approach within which Belarus maintains its agency in the turbulent regional and global agenda. "Thus, the theses put forward at the All-Belarusian People's Congress have clarified a number of important issues in Belarusian-Russian relations, and they can be considered a programmatic vision of the contours of interaction from the official Minsk," concluded Dmitry Golubnichy.
BELTA