BELARUS NEWS AND ANALYSIS

DATE:

30/01/2007

Belarus should diversify relations with West - Lukashenko

MINSK, January 30 (Itar-Tass) -- A new situation arose in relations between Belarus and the West, Belarussian President Alexander Lukashenko believes.

"It is very important to us to establish relations with the West," Lukashenko said on Tuesday at the meeting with leader of Russian Communists Gennady Zyuganov. It is not differences with Russia that are the point of the matter, the Belarussian leader explained. "It is that Europe has now realized that it depends on Belarus, too, as all arteries, particularly oil pipelines, stretch via Belarus," he noted.

Lukashenko believes "Europe has now apprised Belarus in a new way," and "a new situation arose", in which Minsk "should urgently diversify relations."

The assertions that "Lukashenko flirts with the West" are "idle talk", the Belarussian leader said. He sees his task in destroying the "stone wall" between Belarus and the West and opening a dialogue.

Source:

http://www.tass.ru/eng/level2.html?NewsID=11204105&PageNum=0