Alyaksandr Lukashenka met today with the governor of Russia’s Murmansk region, Andrei Chibis. The talks focused on joint enterprises, eliminating critical dependencies, and the memory of the Second World War, although Lukashenka’s press service has so far not mentioned the topic of a Belarusian port in the region.
“We are ready to work with the Murmansk region in the way the Murmansk region itself is ready to work. We do not consider you a distant Arctic region, although it is Arctic, but not distant for us. We are ready to build relations with you not only on the basis of supplying our products to your region, although that is also important, but we are also ready to create joint enterprises so that all of us can benefit,” Lukashenka said.
As examples of cooperation with the region, he mentioned passenger and special-purpose vehicles, food products, agriculture, and elevators.
“We are ready to cooperate with you in all these areas. Especially since we are working very intensively to move away from everything imported from the West — from those countries that have imposed sanctions against us. We have practically succeeded in this. This primarily concerns industry, certain components and assemblies. In this regard, you can rely on Belarus,” Lukashenka said.
He also decided to emphasize the advantages of Belarusian products over imported ones.
“Imported goods may be of a slightly higher level somewhere, but they are чужое, foreign. If something suddenly happens, you have to look for it beyond the ends of the earth, and it is not so simple. But here, at home… Belarus is not foreign for Russia. It is our own. At any moment we can supply any part that has failed in our equipment, we can deliver the required amount of food, food products, clothing, if that is needed for you. Although you are successfully, I know, solving any problems. You know what Belarus is rich in, how it can help Russia’s regions. First of all, such regions close to us as the Leningrad region, St Petersburg, and, of course, Murmansk,” Lukashenka continued.
According to him, he constantly urges the Russian side to get rid of dependence on third countries.
“Let us move forward, but the most important thing is to see our own interests. You see how events are developing in the world. We must defend our land, our people and first of all see our own interests. At every meeting with Russia’s leadership I express this position, orienting them toward the need to get rid of some dependence on other countries, especially critical dependence. We must defend what is our own,” he said.
Lukashenka specifically mentioned the “goods of the Union State” and added that movement in this direction is needed without creating additional barriers.
“We will certainly achieve our goals, because these are the interests of our peoples — Russians and Belarusians,” he noted.
“In any areas we are ready to get involved and work. I am confident that we will achieve certain results with you if we are oriented toward intensive cooperation between your region and Belarus,” Lukashenka concluded.
It is noted that last year supplies of Belarusian goods to the Murmansk region amounted to $103.9 million, increasing by 5 percent.
It should be recalled that in April 2024 an agreement was signed on the construction of a Belarusian terminal in Murmansk. The port’s capacity is expected to be 25–30 million tonnes of cargo per year, with the first shipments expected to pass through it in 2028. In April 2024, a legal entity was also established to be responsible for developing the project. Since then, there has been little news about the Belarusian port in Murmansk. In November last year, Deputy Governor and Minister for Arctic Development and the Economy of the Murmansk Region Svetlana Panfilova said the project was “at the pre-investment stage of developing design solutions and determining how to provide the terminal with infrastructure.”
There were also historical digressions. This time, Lukashenka recalled the period of the Second World War. According to him, writer Ivan Shamyakin fought on the territory of the region. Such facts, he said, connect Belarus and the Murmansk region. Lukashenka also emphasized the important role of Murmansk, through which supplies of military equipment passed.
“Among other things, thanks to this Murmansk covered itself with unfading glory. Many people died there. But the northerners fought worthily to bring us to that Victory which was celebrated in May 1945. Just like Belarus, you suffered greatly from that war and endured hardships. And this is our common Victory. We must see it, honor it, and under no circumstances throw it overboard. When I hear some attacks by the Baltic states and Ukraine, in terms of destroying this or that, and claims that the Patriotic War is not something for them, I think in a down-to-earth way: why are you throwing the great dignity of your people into the trash? Why are you doing this? This is something to be proud of,” he said.
“We never divided the Murmansk region and Belarus, especially when it comes to the navy. Just as in the Baltic, your forces also had our guys from Belarus serving there. And they are proud of it,” Lukashenka added.