Łukašenka, Putin to participate in Union State meeting on April 6 – Russian premier

March 27, BPN. The Union State’s Supreme State Council is scheduled to meet on April 6, Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Mishustin said, as quoted by TASS. Alaksandr Łukašenka and Vladimir Putin are expected to participate.

On March 27, Mishustin told the Union State’s Council of Ministers that the Russian-Belarusian union had “a great future in the emerging multipolar world,” adding that the two countries “can cope with the most difficult challenges together.”

“The Russian and Belarusian governments actively cooperate and coordinate decisions as a team. Among other things, they remove barriers and restrictions on the movement of goods, services, and workforce,” Mishustin said.

His Belarusian counterpart Raman Hałoŭčanka highly appreciated the extent of cooperation between Belarus and Russia, the Belarusian Council of Ministers reported. He said it was necessary to equalize the environment in which companies operated, to remove the factors restraining the mutual supply of goods, and to eliminate the remaining barriers and restrictions.

“We should accelerate the implementation of the signed intergovernmental agreements on common industrial policy and the recognition of technological operations within the Union State. After all, they are primarily aimed at ensuring the rapid development and sustainable growth of the Belarusian and Russian industries,” said the prime minister.

He noted that “one of the main reasons for the growing commodity prices is the increased cost of transportation due to changes in logistics.” In this regard, the parties should strengthen coordination “in the transport sector in response to the increased sanctions pressure.”

Hałoŭčanka said that a package of well-drafted agreements had been signed to bring down “the price factor that affects the cost of goods due to the changes in logistics.”

To preserve the digital independence of Belarus and Russia, “it is necessary to intensify cooperation on the import substitution of software, the recognition of digital signatures, and citizens’ access to the two countries’ digital platforms,” the prime minister said.