Raman Yakauleuski: Lukashenka pays for his greed

The one-sided cooperation with Uralkali company shows how unreliable Lukashenka is as a business partner.

Political observer Raman Yakauleuski spoke to charter97.org about Uralkali's decision to stop exports through the Belarusian Potash Company (BPC).

“They used to tell us fairy tales about Soyuzkali. Now we see that the situation of Uralkali and BPC became a scandal in the business community. Despite arrangements, the Belarusian party wanted one-sided cooperation rather than doing business together. It demonstrates the 'reliability' of such a partner,” the political observer noted.

He underlines that the incident will have and already has political consequences.

“Economics and politics are closely related in Belarus and Russia. Being the president of Russia, Vladimir Putin has to protect the interests of the Russian capital, but not the interests of Lukashenka. Some experts say the Belarusian ruler avoids meeting with Putin on purpose, but he cannot do it forever. Lukashenka and Putin will meet for serious conversation sooner or later,” Raman Yakauleuski says.

He thinks the Belarusian ruler behaves so bravely because Russia hosts the G-20 Summit in September. Barack Obama is expected to attend the event, so Putin will forget about Lukashenka for a time.

“We can say that Uralkali's refusal to sell potash through BPC was caused by Lukashenka's greed. His unpredictable behaviour for partners, in this case for Russia, doesn't show him as a reliable and predictable partner. It is an important feature for big investors and business partners,” Raman Yakauleuski is confident.

The Board of Directors of Uralkali company took a decision yesterday to stop export sales through the Belarusian Potash Company.