MOSCOW, April 04. /ITAR-TASS/. CIS heads of government will meet in Minsk on May 30. A decision to this effect was taken after a session of the CIS Foreign Ministers Council on Friday.

Initially the meeting was scheduled to be held in Kiev, but Ukraine cut short its presidency of the CIS.

The CIS heads of state meeting is slated for autumn.

Belarus’ top diplomat said the country is ready to take over the presidency of the CIS.

“We are ready to hold the presidency that will benefit the Commonwealth,” Belarusian Foreign Minister Vladimir Makei said.

“Belarus is one of the active participants in integration processes on the post-Soviet space,” he said.

CIS Executive Secretary Sergei Lebedev said Belarus would preside over the CIS supreme structures in 2014. He praised Belarus’ move “to take up the CIS flag and carry it till 2015, when Kazakhstan takes over.”

 

Results of the meeting

During the meeting, the foreign ministers exchanged views on a wide range of issues. They discussed steps towards expanding integration, defence and education cooperation. Special attention was riveted to security, particularly that on the Tajik-Afghan border.

“We agreed with Tajikistan’s proposal to provide aid from the CIS to strengthening border security, because the Tajik-Afghan section is exposed to the worst risks,” Makei said.

“We discussed inter-ministerial consultations within the CIS and approved a plan for 2014,” he said.

Belarus has called for stepping up the efforts at the global level and taking joint action along these lines, Makei said.

“Certain problems may arise in bilateral relations. But CIS states should take a common position on major global issues. Belarus will do its utmost for such approach to prevail in the CIS,” he said.

The CIS Foreign Ministers Council expressed hope that Ukraine would not leave the Commonwealth.

“The foreign ministers said they were satisfied to see a Ukrainian delegation taking part in the meeting and signing several documents,” Lebedev said after the meeting.

“Ukraine was in the focus of CIS foreign ministers. They came out in favour of a soonest possible stabilization. A dialogue is indispensable to contribute to solving problems that Ukraine faced,” he said.

“The ministers expressed hope that despite certain statements, Ukraine would not leave the CIS. This meets the interests of the Ukrainian people and of the Ukrainian state,” Lebedev said.