Lukashenko, Putin agree to appoint date of their meeting soon

Belarusian and Russian Presidents, Alexander Lukashenko and Vladimir Putin, have agreed to appoint a date for their meeting soon, the Belarusian president’s press service said on Sunday after their telephone call, TASS says.

"They agreed on the following: to appoint a date of their meeting soon. Its key goal will be to control the implementation by the two governments of the instructions issued by the presidents earlier. First of all, in the sphere of import substitution in all areas of anti-sanction cooperation," it said.

The presidents also discussed preparations for a session of the Supreme State Council of the Union State of Russia and Belarus scheduled for April-May. "The presidents discussed preparations for a meeting of the Supreme State Council. Since it is planned to hold a meeting of the Union State’s Council of Ministers, the session of the Supreme State Council is preliminarily scheduled for April-May," the press service said. "The meeting is expected to formalize the existing document and the sides are expected to sign corresponding documents".

Apart from that, Lukashenko and Putin exchanged views on possible further steps within the Union State to ensure their countries’ security. "The presidents discussed the common agenda of cooperation in the spheres of economy and politics, as well as security issues. In particular, the spoke about further actions within the Union States to ensure Belarus’ and Russia’s security," it said.

At a meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in Minsk on January 19, Lukashenko said he plans to meet with Putin "more often" this year. Last year, the two presidents had ten personal meetings and several telephone calls.