Statement of Alaksandr Milinkievich on rising tensions between the official Minsk and Moscow

The latest events around the issues of indebtedness of Belarus before Gazprom and of Gazprom before Belarus reflect the serious crisis in political relations between the leadership of Belarus and Russia.

Recriminatory claims become increasingly more confrontational and dangerous. Belarus needs pragmatic good-neighbourly and mutually beneficial relations with the Russian Federation – not the regular scandals, unpredictability, and confrontation.

At the same time, everyone clearly sees the complete failure of the command-and-control economy model built in Belarus in conditions of normal market mechanisms and real energy resources costs.

Only market reforms of the economy and its modernization with the help of the civilized countries (with the EU in the first place), democratization and respect of economic, political, and civil rights of Belarusians, as well as the national unity and concord could create a firm foundation for the preservation of independence, and for the prosperity of the Belarusian state.

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