Important documents signed following Supreme State Council meeting: security guarantees, unified energy market, Victory anniversary
The interstate treaty between Belarus and Russia on security guarantees within the Union State framework and the interstate treaty between Russia and Belarus on the formation of a unified electric energy market of the Union State have been signed by the presidents of Belarus and Russia, Aleksandr Lukashenko and Vladimir Putin, following today’s meeting of the Supreme State Council of the Union State in Minsk
The treaty on security guarantees defines mutual allied obligations to ensure the defence, protection of the sovereignty, independence and constitutional order of Belarus and Russia, the integrity and inviolability of the territories and the external border of the Union State with the use of all available forces and means.
Next year, the unified electricity market of the Union State will be gradually formed. The document signed by the two heads of state is designed to minimise losses in power grids, balance tariffs, ensure mutual electricity flow, and strengthen the energy security of Belarus, Russia and the Union State as a whole.
The presidents of Belarus and Russia also approved the Security Concept of the Union State. The document was prepared in connection with significant changes in the military-political situation and socio-economic situation in the Eastern European region, including in the territory of the Union State, increased sanctions pressure on it from the West, and an unprecedented information war against the member states. The concept is based, among other things, on the constitutions of Belarus and Russia, the Treaty on the Establishment of the Union State (as of December 8th, 1999), the National Security Concept of Belarus, the National Security Strategy of Russia, and the Union State Military Doctrine.
A number of decisions relate to strengthening the social security of citizens in the Union State and creating more favourable conditions for them.
A resolution was adopted at the meeting of the Supreme State Council of the Union State in Minsk on the creation of comfortable tariffs for the use of communication and data transfer services in the territory of the Union State (cancellation of roaming). As stated, the new tariffs will come into force on the territory of the two states from March 1st, 2025.
Uniform rules for the protection of consumer rights in the Union State have been established, enabling the residents of the Union State to be more protected in the system of relations with producers and retailers.
Following the results of the Supreme State Council meeting, certain measures to counter the illegal import of goods into the territory of the Union State were approved, amendments were made to the Regulations on the Union State Standing Committee, and the necessary decisions were taken to prepare for the next meetings of the Supreme State Council.
A plan of events to be held in Belarus and Russia has been adopted to mark the 80th anniversary of the Victory in the Great Patriotic War in 2025. These include a patriotic forum, a solemn concert on Victory Square in Minsk, improvement of memorials and burial sites of those who died during the Great Patriotic War, as well as joint press events and press tours.
The participants of the event also heard reports on the implementation of the Main Guidelines for Implementing the Provisions of the Treaty Establishing the Union State for 2024-2026.
“We have just signed two very important treaties: on the unified electricity market and on security guarantees. Of course, these treaties are of fundamental importance: one in the economic sphere, the other in the security sphere, as both treaties define mutual allied obligations to ensure the security of Russia and Belarus using all available forces and means. That’s why we also went so far as to meet Belarus’ request to deploy Russian tactical nuclear weapons on its territory,” Russian President Vladimir Putin said after the signing.
As for the unified rules of consumer protection in the Union State, the relevant document was prepared by Belarus’ Ministry of Antimonopoly Regulation and Trade and Russia’s Federal Service for the Oversight of Consumer Protection and Welfare (Rospotrebnadzor). As State Secretary of the Union State Dmitry Mezentsev explained to journalists on the eve of the Supreme State Council meeting, the emergence of unified rules will allow millions of citizens to be more protected in the system of relations with sellers, manufacturers, intermediaries, and suppliers, “This is a breakthrough decision, it is truly significant and landmark.”
At the end of the signing ceremony, the President of Belarus and the President of Russia took part in a special stamping of the postal block ‘25th Anniversary of the Signing of the Treaty on the Establishment of the Union State’.
