Russia and Belarus fail to meet halfway.
The first meeting this year of the Council of Ministers of the Union State of Russia and Belarus was held in Brest yesterday. As usual, the prime ministers of the two nations were at pains to demonstrate how close they had become. However, Russia did not budge from its contentious terms on oil duties. It agreed to rescind the duties only on 6.3 million tons for internal consumption, a clause openly opposed by Alexander Lukashenko, while Minsk again kept silent on the recognition of Abkhazia and South Ossetia – an issue of high priority for Russia.
For the first time, the Council of Ministers held its meeting in Brest rather than Moscow or Minsk. Addressing a small circle of Russian and Belarusian negotiators on the eve of the meeting, Vladimir Putin thanked his hosts for the choice of the venue, explaining that as a symbol, Brest had taken on added relevance on the eve of the 65th anniversary of victory in the Great Patriotic War. "The war started here, and it was from Brest that our offensive on Berlin was launched," Vladimir Putin said.
In the meantime, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko was busy conducting his own offensive in Venezuela. The Russian Government dismissed reports that Lukashenko had skipped town for a meeting with Hugo Chavez in order to avoid a meeting with Vladimir Putin as "groundless speculation." According to the government's press service, "There were no initial plans for a meeting between Vladimir Putin and Alexander Lukashenko. After all, the meeting of the Council of Ministers is being held in Brest, not Minsk."
One of the key items on the agenda for that meeting was the "balance of fuel and energy resources for 2010." Belarus is pressing Moscow to lift export duties as of July 1. Russia supplies nearly 21.5 million tons of oil to its neighbour each year. Under a recently signed agreement, Belarus will get only one third of that amount (6.3 million tons) duty-free, and it must be restricted to internal consumption ; for the rest Minks will have to foot the full bill. On the eve of Vladimir Putin's visit, the president of Belarus expressed his displeasure with the Russian position and even challenged the idea of the formation of the Customs Union as such.
The agreement he signed with Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez on cooperation in oil refining was also a snub. Under the agreement, Venezuela will supply 80,000 barrels of oil to Belarus each day, which is comparable to the duty-free supplies (130,000 barrels) it had sought from Russia. However, the Russian government can only guess how Venezuela plans on transporting its oil to far-off Eastern Europe (sending tankers across oceans is anything but cheap).
However, Moscow was not to be provoked. As Vladimir Putin said after the Council of Ministers meeting, the amount of oil delivered for internal consumption in Belarus would remain the same: 6.3 million tons. "Duties will be lifted when the common economic space is created as of January 1, 2012," the Russian Prime Minister reaffirmed, adding that "Russia is already helping the economy of Belarus by cutting its energy prices." Cheap gas ($169 per 1000 cubic metres compared to $304 for neighbouring Ukraine) saves Minsk $2.6 billion per year. To that figure, one should add the $1.6 billion saved on duty-free supplies of 6.3 million tons of oil. That adds up to $4.2 billion. However, Russia considers these investments to be worthwhile considering the prospect of integration.
Belarus could, in return, support Russia by recognizing the independence of Abkhazia and South Ossetia, Vladimir Putin suggested. "We have invariably supported Belarus in the international arena," the Russian Prime Minister said. "Russia indeed expected Belarus to support us vigorously. This did not happen." Vladimir Putin said that he personally had never raised this issue with the leadership of the Union State, but the presidents of the two countries had discussed it.
Vladimir Putin did not rule out that Belarus was reluctant to antagonize the West: during the crisis, the IMF extended a $3 billion loan to the republic. "One can take the position of Kisa Vorobyaninov: on certain issues bargaining is inappropriate," Vladimir Putin said candidly. "I agree with him on that point. But Belarus has its sovereign rights." Judging from the fact that Sergey Sidorsky made no reaction to the remark, Belarus does not intend to budge on the issue. Nor does Russia.
By Inga Vorobyova