Belarus’ authorities use inauguration of Ukrainian president for breakthrough in international relations

On June 7^th, President Lukashenko attended the inauguration of Petro Poroshenko as Ukraine’s new president in Kyiv.

Lukashenko’s visit to Kyiv was kept a secret until the meeting between Presidents Poroshenko and Putin during the D-Day 70^th Anniversary celebration in Normandy. The Belarusian authorities seek to use the opportunities opened up by events in Ukraine to step forward onto the international arena – primarily to normalise relations with European capitals amid the currently trending de-escalation of the confrontation between the Kremlin and Kiev. The Belarusian government also hopes to gain economic benefits from the Russo-Ukrainian conflict by increasing the penetration of Belarusian products into Ukraine and mediating the penetration of Ukrainian goods to the EEC market and vice versa – Russian goods to the Ukrainian market.