Leanid Zaika: Lukashenka took offence at Putin for oil duties

The Belarusian ruler has understood he shouldn't expect cancelling export duties on Russian oil.

Head of the analytical centre Strategy Leanid Zaika talked with charter97.org about Lukashenka's complaints about unequal conditions in the Eurasian Economic Union.

“There must be no exemptions and restrictions in the Eurasian Economic Union. All goods inside the union must be traded freely. It means a slab of pork fat produced in Brest can be sold in, for example, Birobidzhan or Samara without any exemptions and restrictions. In the same way, a Russian car produced in Tolyatti can be sold freely in Minsk. It applies to all goods, including energy. So, Lukashenka just gave these arguments to Putin,” the analyst noted.

The expert stressed the export duties on oil were nonsense.

“To have monopoly rent from oil production, one should impose rental payments instead of export duties, which, if cancelled, can give Lukashenka up to 6-7 billion dollars. But Putin considers him to be a fool. Lukashenka, as Stierlitz said, doesn't want to be a fool in the old Polish preferans. So, Lukashenka took offence at the Kremlin's ruler for export duties and complained about unequal conditions in the Eurasian Economic Union,” the economist thinks.

The dictator said on Saturday talking to workers of BelGee company that “Belarus cannot enter the Eurasian Economic Union on unequal conditions.”