MOSCOW, January 16. /TASS/. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and Belarusian Ambassador to Moscow Alexander Rogozhnik hailed the intensity of bilateral top-and high-level political contacts, the Russian foreign ministry said after their meeting.

Rogozhnik is completing his mission to Russia after being appointed chair of the Vitebsk Region Executive Committee.

The two diplomats also welcomed "the steady development of comprehensive bilateral cooperation and the sustainable dynamics of the construction of the Union State [of Russia and Belarus], as well as close foreign policy coordination within integration associations and international organizations both countries are members of."

The Russian minister highly assessed the Belarusian diplomat’s role in the development of Russian-Belarusian relations and awarded him with the Russian foreign ministry’s lapel badge "For Contribution to International Cooperation."

Apart from that, Lavrov "expressed confidence that constructive cooperation with Rogozhnik in his new capacity will continue in the interests of the Russian and Belarusian brotherly peoples," the ministry added.