New Russian envoy to Belarus outlines his tasks :: Charter'97 :: News

The former governor of Saratov Region, Dmitriy Ayatskov, who was appointed Russia`s new ambassador to Belarus last week, believes his mission is "not diplomatic, but rather a political one".

"Economic integration is to continue, there is some potential there, and some unused resources. It is necessary to ensure the freedom of movement of commodities and people, and to carry out humanitarian and cultural projects," Ayatskov told a news conference at the office of the state radio and television broadcasting company in Saratov today.

He believes that one of his objectives in the new post is "to unite all participants of the negotiating process moving towards the unification of the two nations".
"I would like to be Russia`s last ambassador in Belarus in the same way as I am the first and last governor [he served two terms as governor of Saratov Region - his last term in office ended in April 2005] of Saratov Region to be elected by the people," Ayatskov said, according to the broadcaster`s official web site.

When asked about Belarus and its president, Alyaksandr Lukashenka, Ayatskov said that "the calmness of people [presumably citizens of Belarus] and their confidence in their future and stability are the reasons why the EU has been attacking Lukashenka. But Europe will not benefit from "fighting" against Lukashenka, it is much cheaper to find points in common".
When asked about relations between the authorities and opposition in Belarus, Ayatskov said: "Opposition exists, but this does not mean Lukashenka will go tomorrow. Opposition means moving forward, too, and in Belarus moving forward primarily means moving towards Russia. However, for the time being there is no single centre for managing all political and economic processes in Belarus, but I hope we will be able to create it," he said.

Ayatskov also answered questions about his latest work in Saratov. "I meet many of my friends and colleagues, even those whom I had asked to step down from their posts. But there are some people I would not want to see again, and perhaps, they feel the same about me," he said.

"My criminal case lasted exactly a week [in August 2004 when he was summoned for questioning together with his wife about the embezzlement of state funds but the charges were dropped a few days afterwards], and not a single example of abuse of office could be produced against me based on all eight points listed in the accusation, and there is no investigator who has managed to prove that I have misspent at least a rouble from the budget funds, let alone millions and billions," Ayatskov added.