BELARUS NEWS AND ANALYSIS

DATE:

01/09/2006

Lukashenko: Belarus won't buy Russian gas at European price

PINSK, Belarus, September 1 (Itar-Tass) - Belarussian President Alexander Lukashenko said on Friday his country would not buy Russian gas at a price the Western European countries buy.

"Russia offers oil to us at a price higher than to Ukraine, and the gas price is higher than that for Germany. We will never buy gas at such price," he told Itar-Tass during his working trip to Pinsk, southwestern Belarus.

"We are not against growing prices. But the gas price should be equal to that in Russia to comply with the union state treaty," Lukashenko said.

Belarus has proposals for oil development in other countries, mainly in Venezuela. "If we translate this project into reality, we will sell oil there, earn money to make our people feel safe," he said.

Belarussian economy "will never be ruined in the conditions of fuel price hikes and our people will not go begging," he said.

"We'll do our utmost to compensate for extra spending, if it is caused by growing gas and oil prices," Lukashenko said.

Source:

http://www.tass.ru/eng/level2.html?NewsID=10753781&PageNum=0