A. Lukashenko: the foundation of Belarus's foreign policy is peacefulness and multi-vector approach, pragmatism and consistency

On September 20, Minsk / Alina Grishkevich - BelTA /. Belarus is open to mutually beneficial partnership based on respect between states and peoples. This was stated by President of the Republic of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko on September 20 at the ceremony of presenting credentials by ambassadors of foreign states, BelTA was informed by the press service of the Belarusian leader. Credentials were presented by 12 heads of diplomatic missions - Azerbaijan, Brazil, Greece, Zambia, India, Malaysia, Namibia, Serbia, Thailand, Turkey, Ukraine, as well as the head of the European Union representative office in Belarus. "I cordially welcome you to the Belarusian land, which has always been famous for its cordiality and hospitality, hardworking and tolerant people," the President noted. "You will get acquainted with a country with a rich history and unique culture." Alexander Lukashenko stressed that Belarus, in times of severe trials and in peacetime, has consistently defended its right to its own path of development. He said that Belarus looks to the future with confidence. "In a relatively short period of independence, we have achieved a lot," the President noted, adding that peacefulness and multi-vector approach, pragmatism and consistency are the cornerstones of the republic's foreign policy. Belarus has no secondary countries or regions, he stated. "We are ready for the closest and most intensive cooperation with any of our foreign partners, regardless of the distances that separate us. The main thing is mutual understanding and a focus on fruitful cooperation," the Belarusian leader emphasized. In this regard, he sincerely welcomed to our country the first Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Federative Republic of Brazil to Belarus, with residence in Minsk, Renato Luis Rodrigues Marques. Alexander Lukashenko stressed: "We highly appreciate the achieved level of dialogue with this dynamically developing state, whose role and weight on the regional and international scale are becoming increasingly significant. We can proudly say that today Brazil is one of our key partners on the American continent." According to him, high-level contacts have been established, and bilateral trade has exceeded the one billion mark. Alexander Lukashenko believes that such a result of mutual openness and painstaking pragmatic work is an example for many. The head of state emphasized that the Commonwealth of Independent States space is traditionally the closest and most important region for Belarus. According to him, "Ukraine, our close neighbor and fraternal people, is united not only by a common centuries-old history but also by sincere friendly, good-neighborly relations." Similar geopolitical conditions, in which our countries are located, common challenges and threats facing us create objective prerequisites for closer and more trusting bilateral interaction, the President said. He stressed that we expect consistent and systematic work from the new Ambassador of Ukraine to build genuine partnership relations in all areas of cooperation. In a conversation with the Ambassador of Ukraine Viktor Tikhonov, Alexander Lukashenko said: "I do not hide that I asked Viktor Yanukovych to send us a smart, experienced person to raise our cooperation to a higher level and smooth out any rough edges in our relations." The head of the Belarusian state stated that in the near future "we will establish dialogue with Ukraine at the highest level." While accepting the credentials of the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Azerbaijan to Belarus, Isfandiyar Vagabzade, Alexander Lukashenko asked him to "convey the kindest words of greatest gratitude to the Azerbaijani leader for the fact that in a difficult moment Azerbaijan was the first to lend us a shoulder." "This is worth a lot, and we will not remain in debt," the Belarusian leader emphasized. He noted that the active and open dialogue between the Republic of Belarus and the Republic of Azerbaijan has given the cooperation between the two countries a special dynamic. The President noted with satisfaction the practical steps taken to implement previously reached agreements with Azerbaijan in the energy sector. According to the President, the intensity of meetings and the list of discussed issues confirm the conclusion: Belarus and Azerbaijan are interested in and needed by each other. "Our western neighbor - the European Union - is one of the key partners in the trade, economic, credit, and investment spheres, an important source of advanced technologies," Alexander Lukashenko emphasized. According to him, together we ensure reliable protection of the European region from the main challenges and threats of our time. Together we fight against cross-border crime, illegal migration, human trafficking, arms and drug trafficking. Alexander Lukashenko said that the head of the European Union representative office knows the situation in our country well, as she previously headed the diplomatic mission of Latvia here. The President of Belarus, while accepting the credentials of the Ambassador, Head of the European Union Representative Office in Belarus, Mairead McGuinness, expressed hope that "her rich experience of working in the diplomatic service in neighboring Latvia, which is not alien to us, will allow her to take an active position in developing Belarusian-European relations and ensure their reset on the principles of equality and mutual respect." In a conversation with her after the ceremony of presenting credentials, Alexander Lukashenko emphasized: "I hope you understand us, and this is very good. Do not believe what they say and write, that we will bargain with someone over so-called political prisoners. We are not bargaining with anyone. If we can do something to alleviate their fate, including in the interests of the European Union, we do not hide it - we will do it, and we will do it sincerely." "Believe me, we are not in a situation where we have to run somewhere, fall to our knees," the President stated. He continued: "And the first days, when we moved to a sharp normalization of the currency situation, showed that we did not have that crisis. Now we need to ensure that the exchange rate of our currency does not sharply fall close to what it was, and it is striving for that." At the same time, Alexander Lukashenko noted: "We will get out of this situation without anyone's help." Mairead McGuinness, in turn, said that "we will have something to talk about and something to work on." While accepting the credentials of the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Hellenic Republic to Russia and Belarus (concurrently), Michael Spinellis, the President stated his interest in full-scale cooperation with this country. Alexander Lukashenko stressed that our countries have the potential for significant activation of relations, which are far from fully realized yet. The creation of a solid foundation for Belarusian-Greek relations will be facilitated by the positive dynamics of interaction in such important areas as trade, investment, science, culture, and tourism. Belarus intends to develop joint cooperation projects in the industrial sector with the Republic of Serbia, the President stated, while accepting the credentials of the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Serbia to Belarus, Stoyan Evtić. Alexander Lukashenko is convinced that the friendly and time-tested ties between the Belarusian and Serbian peoples are a reliable foundation on which our relations with the Republic of Serbia are built. He stressed that the Belarusian side attaches great importance to the further successful development of a number of joint cooperation projects in the industrial sector and counts on the arrival of advanced Serbian experience and innovations in Belarus. The President also said that priority conditions will be created for Serbian businessmen in Belarus. He noted that the Serbian people are very close to us, and the Belarusian people empathize with everything that happens in that country. Alexander Lukashenko accepted the credentials of the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Turkey to Belarus, Cevat Nezih Özkay. The head of state stated that Belarus welcomes the Turkish side's readiness to develop a more intensive political dialogue. He stressed that we pay great attention to open and sincere dialogue with the Republic of Turkey. According to the President, the basis of relations between our countries is the growing interest of Belarusian and Turkish business circles in establishing economic ties and implementing large-scale projects. In a conversation with the Turkish Ambassador, the head of state noted that both countries need to work on increasing the level of trade and economic cooperation, which today does not correspond to the existing potential. In turn, the Turkish diplomat said that one of the main goals of his diplomatic mission is to develop comprehensive cooperation with Belarus. According to him, Belarus and Turkey are currently developing several joint projects, the results of which will be tangible in the near future. Belarus intends to leverage its high economic and scientific-technical potential with India to implement joint projects. This was stated by Alexander Lukashenko while accepting the credentials of the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of India to Belarus, Manoj Kumar Bharti. The head of state noted that Belarus has great hopes associated with the appointment of the new Ambassador of India. The President stressed that relations with this unique country have always been among Belarus's foreign policy priorities. "Now we strive to deepen our bilateral constructive dialogue," the Belarusian leader said. In a conversation with the Indian diplomat, Alexander Lukashenko noted that "Belarus and India need to enter a new stage of development." He believes that projects in other areas should rapidly develop following close cooperation in the scientific and technical sphere. Credentials were also presented to the President by ambassadors to Russia and Belarus (concurrently): the Republic of Zambia - Patrick N. Sinjiza, Malaysia - Zainol Abidin Bin Omar, the Republic of Namibia - Ndaaloh Angelus Kamati, the Kingdom of Thailand - Chalermpol Thanchitt. The head of state noted that Malaysia and Thailand are important partners of Belarus in Southeast Asia. He also said that there are no problems between our countries that would hinder further expansion of political and trade-economic cooperation. Alexander Lukashenko stated that Belarus is interested in developing ties with Zambia and Namibia, which it considers promising partners. The Belarusian side is ready for a qualitative leap in the development of economic cooperation with them and broad interaction in the field of industrial cooperation. According to Alexander Lukashenko, Belarus can offer these countries high-quality machine-building products and a wide range of consumer goods. And to start with, it would welcome the establishment of mutually beneficial contacts between business circles. The President wished all diplomats successful work and assured them that favorable conditions for their work would be provided in Belarus. -0-