Russian President Vladimir Putin presented his Belarusian counterpart Alexander Lukashenko with the Order of Alexander Nevsky.
The Russian president signed a decree awarding the Order of Alexander Nevsky to Lukashenko last August — on the 60th birthday of the Belarusian president. The document says that Lukashenko has been awarded the Order of Alexander Nevsky "for his great personal contribution to the development of traditional friendly ties between Russia and Belarus, to deepening bilateral cooperation in the political, defence, economic and social spheres."
"You know well our attitude to you. I would still like to say once again that, without your active, open position on Belarus-Russia rapprochement, not only would the Union State not exist — although there is still much to be done — but certainly there would be no single economic space, no Eurasian Union of ours, which already includes not only Belarus and Russia, but also Kazakhstan, and two more countries are in the process of accession, they are already, in fact, full members of our organisation," TASS cited Putin as saying.
"This is a major creative process much needed by our people. Thank you very much," he stressed. In his turn, Lukashenko said: "Thank you, Vladimir Vladimirovich. Now, I hope, my patron saint will be protecting me even more. Thank you."
