Statement of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Belarus With Regard to Decision of the Russian Side to Decrease Shipments of Natural Gas

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Belarus regards the decision of the Russian side to decrease by 50 per cent the shipments of natural gas starting November 1, 2002, as a deliberate action to exert economic pressure on the Republic of Belarus.

The decision on decreasing the volumes of natural gas shipments was taken notwithstanding the fact that “Beltransgas” fulfils in good faith the provisions of the contract with “Gasprom” on payments for shipments.

Along with that the Russian side refuses to compensate millions of dollars of losses incurred annually by the Belarusian budget due to indirect taxes levied in the bilateral trade by Russia.

It is evident that such steps of the Russian side lead to disruption of the agreements reached on the highest level and cause serious damage to the union relations between Belarus and Russia.

The Belarusian side expects that the Russian side will with all due respect approach the fulfillment of the agreements on creation of the single economic space.

Minsk, November 2, 2002