Putin describes 2021 as ‘very productive year' for Belarus and Russia

For Belarus and Russia, 2021 was a very productive year, Russian President Vladimir Putin said at a meeting with Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko in Moscow on 18 February, BelTA has learned.

"We see each other regularly; there is something to talk about. Since this is the first meeting this year, I would like to say that last year was very productive," Vladimir Putin stressed.

He noted that the meetings of the two leaders are held regularly, but this year this is the first face-to-face meeting and a good opportunity to compare notes on many positions. "I would like to say that last year was quite productive. First of all, we made serious progress in the development of the Union State. We worked closely and prepared 28 good programs. In fact, work has been in progress across many of these areas for a long time. Actually, these 28 programs have updated the plans we had earlier," Vladimir Putin said.

The president also noted that the parties have adopted the concept of migration policy and the military doctrine. "A lot of work has been done," the Russian leader said.

"I am glad that economic ties have been growing," he stressed. “We had a solid growth of more than 38% and almost $35 billion in trade turnover. This, of course, is a very good indicator. It shows that what we are doing in terms of integration yields concrete results, and this means jobs, people's living standards, and wages. Therefore, I think we have been moving in the absolutely right direction. We will discuss all this today."