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Putin, Lukashenko hold phone conversation to discuss oil and gas supplies to Belarus again

Belarus will buy about 20 bln cubic meters of gas and 24-25 mln tonnes of oil from Russia in 2020, President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko said earlier

Russian President Vladimir Putin Alexei Nikolsky/Russian Presidential Press and Information Office/TASS

Russian President Vladimir Putin

© Alexei Nikolsky/Russian Presidential Press and Information Office/TASS

MOSCOW, December 30. /TASS/. Russian President Vladimir Putin and President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko discussed the topic of oil and gas supplies to Belarus in a telephone conversation on Tuesday, BelTA news agency reports, citing the press service of the Belarusian president.

"Further to and in development of yesterday’s conversation, heads of state discussed the subject of hydrocarbons supplies, having paid particular attention to oil supplies to the Republic of Belarus," the presidential press service said. The telephone conversation took place at the initiative of the Russian side, it added.

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Belarus will not abandon its national currency within integration with Russia — official

"The presidents also exchanged New Year and Christmas greetings," Russia's Kremlin commented.

On Monday, December 30, the Russian and Belarusian leaders had a detailed telephone conversation on oil and gas supplies to Belarus. Lukashenko and Putin agreed that the governments of the two countries would draft interim conditions of oil and gas supplies, if economic entities fail to come to terms by January 1. Then a final decision may be made, which the presidents may approve after the Christmas holidays in the middle of January.

Moscow and Minsk are in the process of coordinating 31 integration roadmaps. At the moment the roadmaps for oil, gas and taxes are still to be agreed on. On December 20 it was announced that Russia and Belarus had agreed on oil and gas supplies in principle. Lukashenko said that his country in 2020 would purchase about 20 billion cubic meters of gas and 24-25 million tonnes of oil. The concrete price of gas will be set in the near future. Lukashenko says it will remain at last year’s level by and large ($127 per 1,000 cubic meters).

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