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Russian language unrestricted in Belarus in any way — ambassador in Minsk

"It’s a state language there and the area of its use isn’t shrinking," the diplomat said

MINSK, February 10. /TSSS/. The Russian language does not bump into any barriers in Belarus and its use there is increasing, the Russian ambassador in Minsk, Alexander Surikov told TASS on Friday.

"Some quarters criticize expansion of positions of the Belarusian language but in my Soviet childhoods I spent Grade One in Ukraine and I studied Ukrainian, although Russian was the state language," he said. "So I don’t understand what kind of problems anyone could possibly have with it."

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Promotion of Russian language abroad strategically important for Russia — concept

"Nor do I understand any problems with (studying) the history of Belarus because it’s the history of the Belarusian people," Surikov said.

He stressed the absence of any impediments for the use of the Russian language in Belarus.

"It’s a state language there and the area of its use isn’t shrinking - that’s for sure - and is even getting bigger compared with the Belarusian language because Russian is used more widely in the world," Surikov said. "Yet it’s important to make things smooth for the Belarusian language, too.".

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