21 Feb 2019 18:13

Date of first working group on Belarusian-Russian integration not determined yet

MINSK. Feb 21 (Interfax) - Belarus and Russia have still not determined the date of the first meeting of the working group on integration development, Belarusian Foreign Minister Vladimir Makei said.

"The date is under consideration, working contacts continue at all levels," Makei told reporters in Minsk on Thursday.

In general, the working group has already drafted proposals on both the Russian and Belarusian side, the minister said.

"These proposals are now being analyzed and discussed in the working group. Do you want all issues, especially problem ones, which were accumulated in the past, to be resolved over the course of a couple of weeks. Some time will be needed," the minister said.

"I think the presidents of Belarus and Russia discussed these issues during their stay in Sochi [on February 13-15], they agreed on a certain further algorithm of [working group] interaction," Makei said.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said in Sochi on February 13, responding to a question as to when he would be able to agree with Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko on debated issues, that "serious decisions cannot be rushed."