Russian President Vladimir Putin said Friday that sanctions and other pressure from the West have sped up the “unification process” for Russia and Belarus.
The two nations signed an integration treaty in 1997. The process has been sped up since the US and its allies rejected the result of Belarus’ 2020 presidential election that saw Alexander Lukashenko win another term.
After the election, the US and EU started imposing sanctions on Belarus and threw support behind an exiled opposition leader. As a result, Lukashenko drew closer to Putin, and Russia was able to launch the initial phase of its invasion of Ukraine from Belarusian territory.
Since the invasion, the West has targeted Belarus with the same sanctions Russia is being hit with. Putin said the pressure was “pushing us to speed up the unification process.”
“After all, acting together it’s easier to minimize the damage from illegal sanctions, it’s easier to start production of products that are in demand, develop new competencies and expand cooperation with friendly countries,” the Russian leader said.
Under the 1997 agreement, known as the Union State, Russia and Belarus would remain separate sovereign states, but people living in each country would get citizenship for the other and would be able to travel freely.
Russia and Belarus are also stepping up military cooperation, and Putin said this week that he will send nuclear-capable Iskander-M missiles to Belarusian territory. Putin also plans to help Belarus upgrade its fighter jets, so they are capable of carrying nuclear weapons.
Been in Belarus many times. Have many great friends there. Clean, Beautiful country with very friendly people. Sort of a Russian- Polish hybrid.
They will be quick to let you know they are Belarusians, not Russians… but they feel unable to change their political status and could see themselves as the next Ukraine.
They appreciate the current relationship with Russia but wish they could be free to have friendly economic relationships with the West as well.
Unfortunately, Belarus belongs to Putin.
My family physician is Belarussian. Not a fan of Lukashenko or Putin. But then, it would be silly to assume that the attitudes of Belarussians who live in Belarus would be similar to the attitudes of Belarussians who chose to leave Belarus, or to assume universality on the basis of one data point, wouldn’t it?
Let’s just call that my opinion based on experience but would still bet my house on the fact that they will proudly claim their identity FIRST above all, enjoy their relationship with Russia but would explode the chance of free trade with world if they had the chance.
Just previously you praised a song calling for the end of nations, open borders. Now, you defend the Belarusian identity.
You are one confused Bolshevik.
“Imagine if no Americans”
Perhaps that’s the song he was contemplating to write,you know who!
Did you mean John Lennon, the UK singer turned US resident that inspired the US immigration law in the late ‘70s?
If so, I’m pretty sure he loved ‘Merica.
Lukashenko accuses Ukraine of shelling Belarus,l. Wether or not true, it goes to show his hypocrisy after continuing to facilitate Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. He better get ready to soon become a governor of the Russian’s Belarus Oblast.
https://us.yahoo.com/news/lukashenko-accused-ukraine-shelling-belarus-164645061.html
Well, Unification is a strong word which means “the process of being united or made into a whole”…! If Putin actually said that, it wouldn’t be up to him or Lukashenko to decide that, rather a general referendum of Belarusian people…! I doubt the majority of people accept the process…!
The “majority” of people voted for the Ukrainian government that we helped overthrow in 2014, too. Rules for thee but not for me….
They voted for a president that took money from Putin in return for the cancellation of the economic agreement with the EU and wanted to sell Ukraine back to Russia. The people revolted in defiance.
The majority of the people in Belarus is called Lukashenko. He controls any election result.
Both Ukraine and Belarus owe it to millions of Russian soldiers that they are not now in the “Third Reich”.