Aliaksandr Lukashenka said during a meeting with Federation Council Chairwoman Valentina Matviyenko that he had recently told representatives of Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy that “our peoples will be together.”
Lukashenka also assured Matviyenko that no force could destroy Belarus’ unity with Russia.
“Russia and Belarus are, as I always say, our common homeland. It is not our fault that two states were created here. But these are very friendly, brotherly states. I believe there is no force capable of destroying this unity,” he said.
“Although there are many who would like to,” Matviyenko interjected.
“A great many. But I am convinced (and I recently told Zelenskyy’s representatives this) that our peoples will be together anyway. Sooner or later, we will be together again. How could it be otherwise? Your relatives are buried in Ukraine. Today you are working for the benefit not only of Russia, but also of Belarus, and not against Ukraine either. How can all this be torn apart? It is impossible. Our people live there; they have always lived together and been friends. And they will remain friends. Time will pass, we will get our heads straight, and we will restore our relations. I am absolutely convinced of that. And in this regard, you can count on Belarus,” he said, without specifying which contacts he was referring to.
Lukashenka also thanked Matviyenko for overseeing the Forum of Regions, which opened in Belarus on Thursday. He said that building relations had been difficult during the era of Boris Yeltsin.
“As for the Forum of Regions and the regions in general, especially in Russia, you know my main point: it was thanks to the regions that we preserved warm and friendly relations between Belarus and Russia,” he said.
“Back then, the regions saved us. We maintained direct relations with them,” Lukashenka added, recalling the Yeltsin era.
“This Forum of Regions that we are holding brings both us and you — Russians and Belarusians — billions of rubles through concrete contracts. We see one another, we get to know each other’s capabilities. It is a tremendous undertaking,” he continued.
