ASTANA, 14 October (BelTA) – Each of the CIS member states prioritizes its national interests, and a joint response to the Western sanctions against Russia and Belarus is not under discussion yet, Chairwoman of the CIS IPA Council, Chairwoman of the Federation Council of the Federal Assembly of Russia Valentina Matviyenko told journalists on the sidelines of the CIS summit in Astana, BelTA has learned.
She was asked if the CIS countries were joining the effort to challenge the Western sanctions against Belarus and Russia.
“The sanctions are used as an instrument to hold back the economic growth of a country, to put political pressure on it. They are illegal, they are unilateral. Only the sanctions that the UN passes in rare cases are legitimate,” she said.
Each CIS member state pursues its own economic and financial policy, she stated. “And we are in no way trying to somehow take advantage of this situation,” said Valentina Matviyenko. “We keep expanding cooperation, looking for new formats, tools. We have no hard feelings in this regard towards the CIS countries. Everyone prioritizes its own national interests, but not to the detriment of our common CIS brotherhood,” she added.
