BELARUS NEWS AND ANALYSIS

DATE:

29/01/2007

Lukashenko did not cancel oil-transit agreements with Russia: Minsk looking for "sources of misinformation"

Statements published by some Russian media that Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko canceled oil agreements signed with Russia do not represent the facts. "It a clear provocation aimed at destabilizing the bilateral relations," Lukashenko's Spokesman Pavel Legkyi is quoted as saying. "The Belarusian side is interested in soonest disclosing source of this misinformation," he stressed.

Earlier, media reported that Lukashenko proposed to introduce extra duties again for transit of the Russian oil via the Belarusian territory. "The delegation that conducts talks again was instructed directly by me: those companies that offer such contracts to us with such (overpriced) tariffs, will be here imposed an extra duty while transiting oil to Europe to let us make up our losses from prices that exceed the world ones," the Belarusian president was quoted as saying by his press office. As Lukashenko said then, Russian companies were transiting about 80 mln tons of oil through Belarus and "the country had something to make up" for its losses.

It is worth mentioning that in early January Minsk suspended transit of Russian oil to Europe via the Druzhba pipeline claiming from Russia to pay new oil transit duties imposed since January 1, 2007. In January it was $45 per ton. However, later supply of the Russian oil was resumed.

Source:

http://www.regnum.ru/english/773612.html