MINSK, 5 March (BelTA) - It is in the interests of Russia to maintain friendly relations with its neighbors, Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko said in an interview with U.S. blogger Mario Nawfal, BelTA learned.
When asked about the possibility of Russia moving away from China and closer to the United States, the head of state stressed that such a scenario is possible in the future. “All kinds of things may happen in life, so I won't dismiss any development. It's quite possible,” Aleksandr Lukashenko said.
At the same time, he believes that the current leadership of Russia is not interested in a dramatic change of foreign policy course.
“Putin is a man who acts in the interests of his own people. For him, the interests of his people come first. We often discuss various matters and developments with him. He has repeated this many times. He is always guided by the interests of Russia and the interests of the Russian people. The territory of Russia is huge, the population is small. It is half of the USA, or even less. It is in the interests of Russia and the Russian people to maintain friendly relations with its neighbors. China is a neighbor, North Korea is a neighbor. We do not choose our neighbors. They are God given. And it is necessary to build normal relations with them,” the president pointed out.
Aleksandr Lukashenko stressed that the United States of America is the world’s leader, a hi-tech, rich country. “It is capable of many things. Russia understands it. And Russia will strive to establish very good relations with the United States of America,” he said. “Let us speak frankly: the sanctions that have been imposed on us and Russia have shown that a lot depends on the United States of America. Russia, Putin, the Russian authorities understand it very well. That is why Russia will try to maintain relations with China, Korea, and Iran. Russia has good relations with them already.”
The president asked a rhetorical question: Who brought Russia and China closer together? “You [the USA] pushed them towards each other. When Bolton and Pompeo came on a visit here, I asked them directly: What are you doing? Why are you cracking down on Russia? You are pushing Russia towards China. If such a nuclear power, similar to the USA, such a militarily strong state pivots closer to such an economic powerhouse as China, you will not be able to break such a union, such an alliance,” he said.
He recalled that the United States put pressure on Iran and North Korea. These states eventually became closer to Russia.
“You imposed sanctions. Russia is a huge country. It is a leader in the energy sector. It needed foreign currency earnings. Russia started looking for ways out not in the West, but in the East, in Asia. And it found it. Today it will be impossible to pull Russia away from China, to tear Russia away from China, to break those relations. This will never happen. The USA will get nothing good if it acts forcefully, by coercion… Trump will never go to war with China or Russia. He knows how it will end. He's a smart man in this respect. But if you put pressure on Russia in a bid to ruin Russia-China relations, it will lead to nowhere. On the contrary, it will lead to greater unity between these states. One will need to act carefully, hold negotiations,” Aleksandr Lukasenko stated.
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