On April 16 the Presidents of Russia and Belarus conferred behind closed doors. When they finally faced the media, an hour later than expected, they declared that whatever remained of the differences between both countries are economic, not political, in nature. The creation of a viable union will take much time, Vladimir Putin told journalists, for it requires bringing into conformity the legislation, financial, and economic systems of both countries. “It is quite obvious that no plans, especially political ones, can be built on an unreliable economy which is viewed by us differently or can be viewed differently,” Putin said.
This may have been the bottom line of Russian president’s message. Moscow is shattering Minsk’s illusions as to the future of the federal state which resembles two cruisers steaming along the same course but living according to different standing orders. In any case, this is the vision of the future union, as presented earlier to journalists by Alyasandr Lukashenka. While Mr. Putin made it clear from the outset that standing procedures are to be uniform: single tax, customs and tariff systems which are expected to push the Belarus-type socialism onto the road of reforms taken by Russia.
Judging by President Putin’s declarations in London the next day, Moscow is bent on pursuing a liberal economic course. His statements to the effect that business should not take orders from the government or that Russia’s economy will get more leeway hardly tally with Lukashenka’s ideas of how things should develop.
“What we are doing now, i.e., creating a federal state, is a grandiose undertaking, something which must not be rushed. That is why we shall watch our step and go slow with it,” Putin stressed.
Lukashenka, the first foreign leader with whom Putin conferred on his maiden trip abroad, stressed again that the intentions of both countries are most serious.
“Everything we say (on the Union of Russia and Belarus) is no bluff. We will push forward and will create a unique federal state,” he maintained.
Despite his optimistic declarations, Lukashenka did not look inspired in the aftermath of his talks with his Russian partner.
The Union’s Secretary, Pavel Borodin, was more lavish with comment when questioned in Lukashenka’s country residence, Zaslavl’. In his opinion, Belarus’s plans to switch to the Russian Ruble while retaining its own National Bank are not sufficiently realistic. Referring to Lukashenka’s declaration that Minsk will never agree to Russia’s Tsentrobank taking over from Belarus’s National Bank, Borodin was brief and to the point, responding “In Soviet times there was a newspaper rubric, ‘If I Were Director’.”
