Belarus leader calls for solidarity of CIS states
MINSK. Oct 25 (Interfax) - Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko has called on CIS member states to form a united front when advocating their CIS partners' interests in the international arena, including within the United Nations.
"We reaffirm our interest in further strengthening the CIS, making the most of its creative potential and having mechanisms of cooperation in all the areas of joint work," Lukashenko said in a statement addressing Belarus's CIS presidency in 2013, which was circulated by the presidential press service on Friday.
"In our opinion, it is extremely important to use the CIS countries' competitive advantages in industries such as energy, transport, the agrarian sector, as well as the extraction and reprocessing of natural resources," he said.
"We need to be persistent in our efforts to create an environment conducive to comprehensive cooperation in innovations and free movement of commodities and services, which should facilitate CIS member states' integration with the global economy and the international trade system," Lukashenko said.
"We are convinced that the step-by-step enhancement of diverse cooperation, which has already contributed to the member states' sustainable development, will continue successfully within the Commonwealth," the Belarusian president said.
