Putin Says Russia, Belarus Have Common Interests in Antarctica

STRELNA, Russia, January 28 (Sputnik) - Russia and Belarus are going to cooperate in Antarctica as both countries have common interests in the region and things to work together on, Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Sunday.

"Today we have considered such an unusual issue as cooperation in Antarctica. One could wonder as to where we are and where Antarctica is. No, it turns out that there are joint interests there as well, there is something to work on together. And we will certainly do so," Putin said at a meeting with his Belarusian counterpart, Alexander Lukashenko.

Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko also said he discussed the economy and defense industry cooperation at a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin on Sunday.

"I am very happy and pleased with the meeting … We had a serious in-depth talk about the economy and the military-industrial complex. We are not hiding anything. We discussed a range of problems and the way forward," he said.

Lukashenko added that the two allies would take the experience of the Russian special military operation in Ukraine into account when advancing their defense industry cooperation.

Putin said ahead of the meeting in St. Petersburg that he would update his counterpart on the latest developments on the battlefield.

Putin, for his part, welcomed advances in cooperation between Russia and Belarus, singling out trade as a case in point.

"The situation is developing very energetically. The first 10 months of last year saw trade reach $42.5 billion, estimated by us in the dollar equivalent. It continues to grow," Putin said in St. Petersburg.

Putin hosted Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko in his home city on Sunday ahead of a Union State summit on Monday. He said Russia was Belarus’ largest investor, with a total of $4 billion.