Lukashenko against excessive politicization of Eastern Partnership
MINSK. Jan 30 (Interfax) - The Eastern Partnership initiative should be stopped from becoming an excessively politicized organization, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko said, according to the BelTa news agency.
"Certainly, not a single organization can exist without politics, but it is necessary to prevent the Eastern Partnership from becoming a purely politicized organization. And God forbid Eastern Partnership countries be given the task of making this belt the zone dividing the European Union from Russia, China, and the East," Lukashenko said at talks with Commissioner for European Neighbourhood Policy and Enlargement Negotiations Johannes Hahn in Minsk on Tuesday.
Belarus attaches great importance to cooperation within this organization, he said.
"And you can count on us in this sense," Lukashenko said.
"Our wish is for the Eastern Partnership to become more down-to-earth and oriented toward achieving practical results," he said.
The tasks facing Europe need to be tackled within the Eastern Partnership, and it is necessary to promote projects that are especially urgent, including in such areas as energy, transport, and logistics, the Belarusian president said.
They also include issues concerning "people's life and visa issues, so that we can communicate with Europe more broadly and freely, while you will be able to visit Belarus freely," he said.