June 5, Minsk / Vladimir Matveev - BELTA/. Presidents of Belarus and Russia, Alexander Lukashenko and Vladimir Putin, have a strong political will and a desire to expand bilateral ties. This opinion was expressed today to journalists by the Chairperson of the Federation Council of the Federal Assembly of Russia, Valentina Matvienko, following a meeting with the head of the Belarusian state, Alexander Lukashenko, as reported by a BELTA correspondent. As Valentina Matvienko noted, a very comprehensive discussion on a wide range of issues took place at the meeting with the President of Belarus. The parties exchanged views on the state of Belarusian-Russian relations, the outcomes of the Russian head of state's visit, the strategy and prospects for further cooperation and the development of integration associations, and issues and trends in world politics. "Following all the negotiations and the meeting with the President of Belarus, I am once again convinced: the leaders of our states have a strong political will and a desire to deepen and expand the ties between Russia and Belarus. This is the most important key point that should make us all happy," emphasized the Chairperson of the Federation Council. "There is an understanding of the path to follow, the speed, and how to make our integration association attractive to other states." Furthermore, an exchange of views took place in the area of humanitarian ties, education, and culture. "There is a huge field for cooperation here," noted Valentina Matvienko. In her opinion, in terms of developing interaction in the fields of innovation and high technologies, the regulatory framework needs to be changed to create more favorable conditions. "Because today, there can be no Russian venture financing of scientific developments in Belarus; we do not have regulatory acts on the distribution of intellectual property, patent protection, and much more that hinders our cooperation. We have accumulated many such knots. They are small, but they need to be untied to allow for the free development of cooperation in various fields," said the Chairperson of the Federation Council. "It was a very deep, interesting, and substantive conversation, and I became convinced of how much the President of Belarus is a patriot of his country. He is a person who loves his people and uses any opportunity for the country's development. This is very important," remarked Valentina Matvienko.