Belarus, Russia Maintain Coordinated Foreign, Security Policy - Lukashenko

The Belarus president said that Belarus and Russia were strategic partners and would continue to coordinate their policies both on the international arena and in the security area.

MINSK (Sputnik) — Belarus and Russia remain strategic partners and continue to coordinate their policies both on the international arena and in the security area, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko said Tuesday.

"Russia has been and will remain our country's strategic partner. We hold a coordinated line in foreign policy, security area, and we are successfully engaged in a set of social and humanitarian issues… We jointly work out common approaches to key economic issues," Lukashenko said at a meeting devoted to Belarusian foreign policy priorities.

Belarus increased its exports by $2 billion over the first five months of 2017, the president continued, pointing out that about 50 percent of that amount went to the Russian market.

Lukashenko noted that the two countries should continue working together on specific economic issues, adding that Belarus faces some specific troubles at the Russian market.

On June 30, Russian President Vladimir Putin said that Moscow and Minsk were strategic partners and had created effective mechanisms of cooperation within the framework of bilateral relations.

Minsk and Moscow started building bilateral relations after the collapse of the Soviet Union and declaration of independence by 15 Soviet republics. Since then, Russia and Belarus have developed economic, cultural, military and political ties and participated in a number of integration initiatives, such as the Union State of Russia and Belarus and the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU).