Minsk, Moscow may agree on entire package of integration roadmaps within one-two months - Golovchenko

<p> MINSK, May 3 - PrimePress. The governments of Belarus and Russia may agree on the entire package of union integration programmes within one or two months, with no firm deadline for such agreement set, said Prime Minister of Belarus Roman Golovchenko. </p> <p>   </p> <p> Belarus has initialled and sent 26 draft Union State programs on integration to the Russian side. Two more documents are still in the pipeline. Prime Minister of Belarus Roman Golovchenko made a statement to this effect at a meeting with Prime Minister of Russia Mikhail Mishustin in Kazan on Apr 28. The governments must agree on the entire package of union programmes before the meeting of the Supreme State Council of the Union State, which is scheduled for autumn this year. While meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin on April 22, President Lukashenko said there were only two or three union programmes of economic nature remaining for Belarus and Russia to reconcile, including taxation. </p> <p>   </p> <p> “This (the reconciliation of union programmes – editor’s note) can happen in a month or two. We would not like to put it off, but, on the other hand, we do not set any strict deadlines. We are communicating, calculating, bringing our positions closer together. Over the last six months we have achieved more convergence than in the past few years,” said Golovchenko speaking on air of the TV channel "Belarus 1" on May 2. </p> <p>   </p> <p> In his words, the roadmaps for a common sectoral policy in industry, agriculture and other areas have already been agreed at the departmental level. The remaining two roadmaps are economically more complicated and should ensure the convergence of economic conditions for businesses of the two countries. “We are debating over the right way to put this scheme together so that the entire package of union programmes could be launched faster and the economic filling of the Union State could unlock its full potential,” he said. </p> <p>   </p> <p> “We have to create more equal conditions for all economic entities in terms of different mark-ups and preferences. The task is the same - to create equal conditions for economic entities. Both the Russian and Belarusian authorities understand that. Only with equal conditions will we not only be able to compete on equal terms, we will be able to complement each other, create new products and new technologies,” Golovchenko said. </p> <p>   </p> <p> As previously reported, the governments of Belarus and Russia initialled a Union State integration program in September 2019 and approved 31 roadmaps in various areas. Draft roadmaps were expected to be coordinated by November 2020, and Lukashenko and Putin were supposed to approve the entire package of integration documents on December 8, 2019 during the events timed to the 20th anniversary of the Belarus-Russia Union Treaty of December 8, 1999. The signing of the package did not take place. Belarus said that the parties failed to reach accompanying agreements on Russian energy prices, compensation for Belarus’ losses resulted from the tax manoeuvre in the Russian oil industry, and removal of barriers to Belarusian commodities in the Russian market. Lukashenko said he would not endorse the roadmaps unless the above fundamental issues are finally resolved. End </p>

2021-05-04

Primepress