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Matviyenko: Presidents of Belarus, Russia have a solid political will to expand bilateral ties

MINSK, 5 June (BelTA) – Presidents of Belarus and Russia Alexander Lukashenko and Vladimir Putin have a solid political will and intent to expand bilateral ties, Chairperson of the Federation Council of the Federal Assembly of Russia Valentina Matviyenko told media after her meeting with Belarusian head of state Alexander Lukashenko on 5 June. According to Valentina Matviyenko, she and the President of Belarus had very detailed talks on a wide range of issues. The sides exchanged opinions on the state of the Belarusian-Russian relations, reviewed the visit of the Russian President, strategies, prospects for further cooperation and development of integration associations, trends in the international policy. “The leaders of our states have a solid political will and intent to strengthen and expand the relations between Russia and Belarus. There is an understanding of what path we should follow and how to make our integration attractive for other states,” the Russian official said. In addition, there was an exchange of views on humanitarian relations, education, and culture. “This is a great area for cooperation,” said Valentina Matviyenko. In her view, in terms of cooperation in innovation, high-technology, the countries need to update the regulatory framework to create a more favorable climate. “Because today there can be no Russian venture funding of scientific research and developments in Belarus. We do not have regulations on the distribution of intellectual property, patent protection, and much more, and this hampers our cooperation. We have a lot of issues. They are small, but they have to be resolved to give freedom to cooperation in various areas,” said the Chairperson of the Federation Council. “This was a very insightful interesting informative conversation. I saw how much the President of Belarus is the patriot of his country. This is a man who loves his people, uses any opportunities for the development of the country. This is very important,” Valentina Matviyenko said. “I think we need to put many of the issues we discussed on the working agenda. We need to examine and resolve those working issues that we have in the relations,” Valentina Matviyenko said.