Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko said on Thursday relations between his country and Russia are not deteriorating, the Belarusian state news agency BELTA reported.
"There is no sharp deterioration in relations, since neither Russia nor we need this," Lukashenko said.
His statement comes in the wake of Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov's visit to Belarus earlier in the week, when Lukashenko failed to hold a meeting with the top Russian diplomat, prompting media speculation.
"The meeting was simply not scheduled," Lukashenko said.
Relations between Moscow and Minsk have been strained over several economic and political disputes, including gas transits, and Lukashenko's failure to honor his promise to recognize the former Georgian republics of Abkhazia and South Ossetia.
MINSK, November 25 (RIA Novosti)
