Posted on 06/15/2009 8:22:25 AM PDT by TigerLikesRooster
Belarus-Russia rift widens, Minsk snubs Moscow meet
Sun Jun 14, 7:53 am ET
MINSK (Reuters) – Belarus on Sunday signaled a growing rift with Russia, saying President Alexander Lukashenko did not attend a security summit in Moscow in protest against a Russian ban on dairy imports from Belarus.
Ties between the former Soviet republics have been strained since 2007. Minsk is angry at rising prices for Russian gas and Moscow by Lukashenko's growing overtures to the West.
Lukashenko was due at a summit of the Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO), which groups Russia, Belarus, Armenia, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan.
He pulled out after Moscow banned one of Belarus's key exports, dairy products, on health grounds. Moscow often uses trade bans to put political pressure on neighboring states.
"Economy serves as the basis for our common security. But if Belarus's closest CSTO ally is trying ... to destroy this basis and de facto put the Belarussians on their knees, how can one talk about consolidating collective security in the CSTO space?" Lukashenko's press service said in a statement.
(Excerpt) Read more at news.yahoo.com ...
Putin is having a tough time finding and keeping friends.
Luka dreamed of an anschluss with Russia with him in charge. Now he’s knows that if they reunite, it won’t be on his terms.
We have a good opportunity to bring “Stalin with a bad combover” into the fold.
Interesting. Who thought several years ago that Luka and Putin would have a fall-out. I guess Russia may find it difficult to concentrate on their pet project in Georgia.
Seriously? Where did you hear that? Got a link?
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