Prime Minister of Belarus Roman Golovchenko said that Minsk had endorsed and handed over to Moscow the projects of 26 integration roadmaps. He spoke about this on Wednesday, April 28, during a meeting with Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin in Kazan.
“We are continuing to work on a package of integration documents. On April 23, we handed over to the Russian side the projects of 26 union programs endorsed by the Belarusian side. This is a lot of work done by the sectoral departments. Two union programs remain in the works, ”the BelTa news agency quoted him as saying.
The Belarusian prime minister stressed that the deputy heads of the governments of the countries continue constructive negotiations on the integration of the countries. He expressed confidence that the “necessary solutions” in the course of this work will be found in the interests of both states.
On April 22, State Secretary of the Union State Dmitry Mezentsev announced that the decision on the depth of economic integration between Belarus and Russia remains with Minsk. Then he clarified that out of the total number of union programs, 26 projects can already be submitted for direct signing.
In mid-April, during a meeting with Mishustin, Golovchenko said that the topic of integration of Russia and Belarus in the economic sphere is a priority issue on the bilateral agenda. He stressed that the package of proposals for deepening economic integration formally has a high degree of readiness, while he pointed out that there are issues on which “there is still no substantive consensus.”
Mishustin then expressed confidence that the countries will be able to “build up integration interaction” and use its opportunities for the development of their economies.
In early April, President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko, in his congratulations on the Day of Unity of Peoples, announced the interest of Belarusians and Russians in further integration. According to him, the countries will overcome all difficulties together.
At the same time, in March, the press secretary of the Russian president, Dmitry Peskov, said that there was no talk of the unification of Russia and Belarus, but deep integration was in the interests of the peoples of both countries. Peskov also pointed out that Moscow and Minsk are working within the framework of the Treaty on the Union State, in particular, agreeing on roadmaps for deepening the integration of the countries.
On February 11, Lukashenko said that 71.5% of citizens were in favor of integration with Russia. He pointed out that the relationship between Belarus and Russia ensures the stability of the region. At the same time, Lukashenko expressed confidence that the CIS does not lose its relevance, despite the existing difficulties.