Meeting with Governor of Russia’s Smolensk Oblast Vasily Anokhin

Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko met with Russia's Smolensk Oblast Governor Vasily Anokhin on 18 November.

"This is already the fifth visit of the governor [of Smolensk Oblast] to Belarus. This suggests that Smolensk also understands that we must be together, grow, help each other, especially in these difficult times. And we will handle any challenges and problems if we are together," the Belarusian leader noted.

"Some in Russia are saying some foolish things: 'Well, Lukashenko, multi-vector policy... He pardoned another several dozens of political prisoners. It means that he is already heading to the West...'. Look, it is very primitive thinking. Bad as it gets. We see and hear that," the head of state said. "Our main foreign policy principle and desire is to live in peace with our neighbors. They are God-given. Poles have been our neighbors for centuries. We cannot do anything about the unfriendly position the Polish leadership has taken towards Belarus today. Are Poles responsible for this? Well, to some extent, yes: they elect the government. But most Poles want to live in peace with us."

"The same situation is with Lithuanians, Latvians, Ukrainians. What can we do if the leadership [of these countries] pursues such a policy... This is why we calmly and purposefully try to build relations with them. These are our interests," the Belarusian leader emphasized.

"Russia is very genuine with us. It does not hurt us in any way. On the contrary, it supports us in the most difficult and challenging times. Naturally, we appreciate this. There are two states and a common Fatherland. Russians do not mind this. It is from Brest to Vladivostok. This is our Fatherland. That says it all. But it happened, and this is not our fault, that we ended up having two states - Belarus and Russia. I have never heard the President of Russia say: "Listen, tomorrow we must live in one state!" This has never happened. There is no need for this," Aleksandr Lukashenko said.

"Belarus-Russia cooperation as separate states is closer than what their cooperation would be if they were part of one state, pointing fingers at each other. We need to stay united, so that no one will be able to pull us apart with their promises and other things, as was the case after the collapse of the Soviet Union," the Belarusian leader said.

Aleksandr Lukashenko emphasized that the economy is the core and foundation of the bilateral relations.

"Our mutual trade used to be almost $5 billion. I see it as the gateway to the huge Russia for Belarus. This is good. As Putin and I agreed, these three regions should be closely connected with Belarus - Bryansk Oblast, Smolensk Oblast , and Pskov Oblast. Leningrad (St. Petersburg) is close by. This is a native and familiar city for us, Belarusians. They are ready to cooperate with us on all fronts. If necessary, we will work, no matter how difficult it may be, with Moscow. They are ready to cooperate with us and buy everything we produce," the President said.

"I hope we will be able to overcome all the difficulties. We are also working on Sakhalin. We are working across all Russia in areas where we have experience. All over Russia. The basis however is our neighbors. We need to figure out why the mutual trade has declined a little and work hard to make it get back to $5 billion," Aleksandr Lukashenko said.

In 2023, trade between Belarus and Smolensk Oblast amounted to $4.4 billion, in January-September 2024 it stood at $3.1 billion.

Aleksandr Lukashenko also emphasized the special spirituality of the residents of neighboring Smolensk Oblast and Pskov Oblast: "We have something to learn from you. It is even higher than that of our people."

"We are always your people and are ready to lend a shoulder, even to the detriment of someone and even to the detriment of our own interests," the Belarusian leader stressed.

According to the President, Belarus and Smolensk Oblast have common history and present. "I am absolutely convinced that we should have a common future as well," he said. "It is practically impossible to separate us. People live, communicate, travel. If we have not made a decision somewhere, I think Russia and Belarus will make these decisions - communication across the border between neighboring regions. Our people are almost one nation and let them live peacefully."

The two peoples have been helping each other since the old times. For example, Belarusian harvesters used to lend a shoulder to their neighbors during grain harvest, and they, in turn, helped the farms with fuel. "No matter how politically divided we were - the Soviet Union collapsed - people realized that it was necessary to be together," the President said.

He voiced a number of key areas for further development of cooperation with Smolensk Oblast. The region means a true gateway to the entire Russia. "There will be no backpedaling from Belarus. All is all about speed today. We have such time now that we need to turn on extra speed, so that, as I say, those who follow, do not trample us," the head of state said. We are ready for it. I know the position of the Russian President, my very good friend, as I call him, my elder brother. We share full support, mutual understanding on all fronts."

One of the proposals is to set up a MAZ service center in this Russian region. "I do not see any problems here," the head of state said. "It is necessary to set up a service center there. Otherwise, why do they need our MAZ trucks, if we cannot service them. Although Belarus is close by, and we are always ready to help. It is necessary, however, to have this site there, too."

Such a center can service other Belarusian machinery as well.

As for the renewal of the fleet of passenger vehicles, 55 MAZ buses, including electric transport, have been delivered to Smolensk Oblast over the past two years. "This is the future. Smolensk people, as well as Belarusians, will just have to do it. We have certain competencies. We need to work together," the head of state said.

The same applies to the supply of road and utilities machinery.

"We need to negotiate and supply. We also need to ensure maintenance," the Belarusian leader emphasized.

There are also opportunities for cooperation in assembly operations. "For example, the assembly plants of Bobruiskagromash and MotoVelo Plant. I choose what you might need. Your people say you need it. This is beneficial for us. We support these enterprises. We need to move in this direction, too," Aleksandr Lukashenko said. "Smolensk will always need farm machinery. I was also briefed that there was a great interest in land reclamation. We have recreated machinery [for land reclamation needs], namely bulldozers, excavators, and drainage pavers. The Amkodor enterprise is located near Orsha. If you need help and experience, we are ready to help you as much as we can."

Belarus can also offer something to Smolensk Oblast in terms of fire equipment. "This is the kind that will always be needed. We even have Zimbabwe, Vietnam, and China buying our machinery."

"If you are going to build roads somewhere, we can get involved. We can do it on a turnkey basis, or we can subcontract it to you. Whatever you need. If you need it," the head of state said.

In his words, Belarus produces a full range of road machinery.

Machine-tool industry is the future, Aleksandr Lukashenko said. "When in Irkutsk, Kazan, I talked to the heads of enterprises, specialists, aircraft builders. They are very interested in machine tools," the President said.

In his words, this area in Belarus had been developed back in the Soviet times, and then it lagged behind a bit. "We have done a lot in the machine tool industry recently. Progress is impossible without it. Any industrial enterprise without machine tools cannot be an industrial enterprise," Aleksandr Lukashenko said. "To be honest, I am not very good at the level of Belarusian machine tool production. I would like to take a look in winter. Along with microelectronics (we also discussed it with the President), machine tool industry is the number one issue for Belarus and Russia. Our demand in Russia is enormous. We are ready to help Smolensk residents if they need it."

Food supplies is the natural area of cooperation, given the fact that Belarus is a neighbor of Smolensk Oblast.

"I do not think we have any problems here. People come and buy what they need," the head of state said.

Aleksandr Lukashenko emphasized the quality of Belarusian products, adding that the state regulation is very strict for the alcohol and tobacco industries. "People know that we have quality goods. There are no problems for us to cooperate," he said.

The governor of Smolensk Oblas thanked the Belarusian head of state for the opportunity to meet and expressed his sincere gratitude for the attention to the issues of cross-border cooperation. "Your friendly relations with Russian President Vladimir Putin are a gold standard and an example for our further actions, which we try to follow in cooperation with our Belarusian colleagues," Vasily Anokhin said. In his words, he discusses many issues with Vitebsk Oblast Governor Aleksandr Subbotin: "You have correctly said, Aleksandr Grigoriyevich [Lukashenko], that our fraternal peoples have a common history, cultural values, and we indeed need to preserve it. Belarus always welcomes us warmly," the head of the Russian region said.

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