Lukashenko says ready for dialogue with a 'new Europe'
Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko stated on Friday that he is open to dialogue with the European Union. However, any negotiations should be on the basis of a transformation, what he called "a new Europe."
"We are not closing the doors in our relations, we are not escalating the over-the-top degree of political tension, we are not saber-rattling at the borders," Lukashenko said in a message to the parliament while adding that the country is "ready to cooperate" and to do "everything that is possible in the current condition."
Moreover, redefining what he dubbed as "new Europe," Lukashenko stated that Belarus needs a "truly independent, good-neighborly, economically developed, politically strong, spiritually rich and culturally multifaceted" neighbor, "and, of course, woven into the Eurasian space in all key dimensions of cooperation."