Russia: Weekly Report (29.01–04.02)

1. Meeting of the Supreme State Council of the Union State 

On Monday, January 29, at the Konstantinovsky Palace in St. Petersburg, Vladimir Putin and Alexander Lukashenko held a meeting of the Supreme State Council of the Union State of Russia and Belarus. The main topic of the meeting was summing up the implementation of the basic document “Main directions for the implementation of the provisions of the Treaty on the Establishment of the Union State for 2021–2023.” At the same time, it is essential to note that Alexander Lukashenko arrived in St. Petersburg two days before the meeting of the Supreme State Council of the Union State and managed to take part in several events dedicated to the 80th anniversary of the breaking of the siege of Leningrad, as well as hold a personal meeting with Vladimir Putin (we wrote about this in our previous digest).

Key theses:

• Lukashenko: “You probably know: we worked hard for two days, one might say, two days, we moved smoothly into the third day, we did a lot of good deeds. You also observed this.”

• Putin: “In July, we will celebrate the 80th anniversary of the liberation of Belarus from the Nazi invaders and in May 2025 – the 80th anniversary of Victory in the Great Patriotic War. These are the most important memorable dates, significant for our two fraternal peoples, firmly connected by common history and spiritual values, family and kinship ties. It is on such a solid foundation that the true alliance and strategic partnership between Russia and Belarus is based, within the framework of which we have been jointly building the Union State for almost 25 years. And along this path, we managed to achieve a lot.”

• Putin: “Thanks to the successful implementation of 28 sectoral union programs, Russian and Belarusian legislation has been unified, the legal and organizational foundations of a common economic space have been formed, conditions have been created for the implementation of a unified macroeconomic and monetary policy, for joint work to minimize damage from illegal Western restrictions.”

• Putin: “Mutual trade is growing steadily from year to year. According to the results of 11 months last year, Russian-Belarusian trade turnover increased by almost 9.5 per cent and came close to a record $43 billion. Russia has invested over $4 billion in the Belarusian economy. About 2.4 thousand Russian companies operate in the republic. With the direct participation of Russia, the construction of a Belarusian nuclear power plant was completed in 2023. This, of course, is a severe movement forward; I mean that not only has the station been built, but, as we always say, an industry is being created. And in this sense, Belarus, of course, has become a nuclear power; this is a serious step forward in developing the economy and scientific sphere, in technological development.”

• Putin: “It is important that Russia and Belarus, under unprecedented external pressure, closely interact on the world stage and inevitably and invariably provide each other with truly allied mutual support. Our countries’ approaches to current global and regional problems are largely similar. The program of coordinated actions of the Union State in the field of foreign policy for the period until 2026, prepared for this meeting, will certainly serve to continue and develop even closer Russian-Belarusian coordination in international affairs. In the interests of forming a truly multipolar, democratic and fair world order, ensuring equal and indivisible security, we will work together.”

• Lukashenko: “We worked very seriously these two days; this is not a joke. We can say directly: from the South Pole to the North Pole. We also discussed problems in Antarctica: more comfortable working conditions are being created for Russians, and a wintering complex has been created. But the most important thing is that no one shares anything there. Belarusians work together with Russians – our station is nearby, 20 kilometres away. And all kinds of assistance – scientific and every day – are provided to the Belarusian specialists stationed there.”

• Lukashenko: “Then Vladimir Vladimirovich and I walked from the south to the north. Of course, we analyzed the events that are happening in the world. Take our aspiration: Russia and Belarus, the People’s Republic of China. Russia is at the forefront of this because it bears the most burden and suffers more than anyone else. And the reasons for all this: the Houthis, the Middle East, and the South China Sea with Taiwan problems – this is all because a multipolar world is coming. As the Russian Foreign Minister said, the monopolist does not want this. They are trying to maintain a unipolar world using different methods and have reached the point of armed conflicts.”

• Lukashenko: “Today we will also approve a new program document, if the members of the Supreme State Council agree, for the next three-year cycle: 2024, 2025, 2026. This cycle involves continuing work to strengthen the common economic space and remove remaining trade barriers. It is important to strengthen the international positioning of our Union, as we are trying to do with the Eurasian Economic Union.”

• Lukashenko: “I am sure everyone understands the importance of pursuing a coordinated information policy. There is a powerful information confrontation going on. Many people call this a war but thank God we haven’t approached war yet, even in the media, but the confrontation is serious. I think if we create a normal media holding, taking into account trial and error earlier, especially Russian specialists who went through this, it will be a good holding. People need to know what is happening in Belarus in Russia. What exists now does not completely satisfy us. And it is right”.

Outcomes and outlook:

The meeting between Vladimir Putin and Alexander Lukashenko was not easy. By the end of 2023, there was a certain tension in relations between Russia and Belarus. Some sources reported that Lukashenko had established additional contacts with the West. Washington has reduced funding for the Belarusian opposition. Against this background, it was important for Putin to “synchronise watches” with Lukashenko and get him to confirm the invariability of Belarus’ course towards strengthening a single Union State. Lukashenko remained true to himself and actively exchanged geopolitical promises for economic preferences. As a result, both sides got what they wanted: Putin received a picture for the voter, and Lukashenko received additional funds for the budget of Belarus.

2. Meeting of Vladimir Putin with the Governor of St. Petersburg, Alexander Beglov 

On Monday, January 29, after the meeting of the Supreme State Council of the Union State, Vladimir Putin held a meeting with the Governor of St. Petersburg, Alexander Beglov. It is noteworthy that despite his long stay in the region, the Russian president left the meeting with the governor of the “northern capital of Russia” to last (before his departure to Moscow, Putin also held a meeting with the governor of the Leningrad region). During the meeting, regional development issues, leading social and economic indicators, and prospects for further development were discussed. In fact, the program of the meeting and Putin’s entire visit to St. Petersburg lay within the framework of the Russian president’s election campaign.

Key theses:

• Putin: “Alexander Dmitrievich, I looked at the official data for St. Petersburg – the city is developing well. The rate of industrial production in St. Petersburg is three times higher than in the country – a good indicator. There is not much emergency housing. The level of financial security is good. Unemployment is at a minimum level. Good results. There are issues that require special attention: ecology, objects of cultural significance, street networks, and road networks within the city. There is something to do: you have a large farm here.”

• Beglov: “The indicators are straightforward: unemployment is the lowest in the country – 1.5–1.7 per cent. Our poverty level has decreased by many per cent, just as you set us the corresponding task. Of course, of course, what have you always paid attention to? The budget focuses on social reforms and social services because life is difficult for people; we must help everyone. Today, these are large families; these are the same veterans, the same blockade survivors, these are the participants of the North Military District and their families, are homeless children who were raised in orphanages, and many others. Per your instructions, we spend almost 70% of the budget on social areas. This applies to national projects and much, much more.”

• Beglov: “Another of the important questions that you posed to us was to get away from technological dependence. I want to say what you said – at the first stage [to leave addiction]. In general, today, we need to switch to advanced technologies. If you looked at the relevant document, St. Petersburg is coping with this.”

• Beglov: “Metro. Vladimir Vladimirovich, I remember well when you once said: go underground and look – not by car, take a ride on the metro. Haven’t you been on the metro for a long time? I went down and looked; then I reported that some of the carriages were 50 years old. When we started transport reform on your instructions, you set the most important task – safety. We never talked about this: it will work out somehow or something else. Today, thanks to the loans the Government allocated on your instructions, there are 144 “Baltiets” metro cars. This is just a fairy tale for us; watching it’s not a shame. We are systematically moving to replace the cars, among other things.”

Outcomes and outlook:

Alexander Beglov is a man from the Kovalchuk team. Understanding that the Kovalchuk group is on the rise today and is quite aggressively strengthening its position, Putin certainly could not ignore the meeting with the governor of St. Petersburg. However, I decided to take a particular pause and sow intrigue, realising that Beglov is not the most famous person in the “northern capital”, and it is necessary to give hope to ordinary voters that the mayor may change soon. However, from Putin’s point of view, Beglov absolutely copes with the job, and there are no serious comments against him (last year’s conflicts with Prigozhin are a thing of the past along with Prigozhin).

3. Meeting on the socio-economic development of “new regions of Russia” 

On Wednesday, January 31, Vladimir Putin held a meeting on the socio-economic development of the “new subjects” [temporarily occupied territories of Ukraine] of the Russian Federation. “The leaders of the occupied parts of Donetsk, Zaporizhzhia, Lugansk and Kherson regions were invited to the Kremlin to participate in the meeting. Also, several medical centres in the temporarily occupied territories were opened online during the meeting.

Key theses:

• Putin: “I would like to draw the attention of my colleagues: there are no trifles in this large, complex, responsible work. Everything is important – everything that surrounds people: the conditions in which they live, study, work, and raise children. In this regard, I would like to start with a topic recently raised at a meeting with participants and winners of All-Russian family competitions. It’s every day, completely peaceful, but apparently, it matters to people.”

• Putin: “We have launched a comprehensive program for developing our historical regions. It contains almost 300 events linked to specific targets in all areas, including the economy and infrastructure, healthcare and education, culture and sports. Last year, as I said, we allocated trillion 77 billion for these purposes, but it turned out a little more: trillion 83 billion rubles – decent money. And in the next few years, we have planned this level of funding – the money has been counted, it is there, and we need it not to disappear anywhere – in approximately the same amount every year.”

• Putin: “The economy is gradually recovering, including industry. More than one and a half hundred enterprises in mechanical engineering, metallurgy, mining, and other important sectors [industry] in all these regions have resumed work. Support for farmers has been established. There are banks and shops. As for banks, I would like to ask our colleagues to pay attention – they will definitely hear us: there is nothing to be afraid of. What was feared before, sanctions have already happened. What is there to be afraid of? We need to enter these territories more actively and work there. I also appeal to our major financial institutions.”

• Putin: “In less than two years in the [self-proclaimed] “DPR”, “LPR”, [temporarily occupied] Zaporizhzhia and Kherson regions, more than two thousand kilometres of roads, about six and a half thousand residential buildings and social facilities have been restored, many of them they were essentially rebuilt.”

• Khusnullin: “Since 2024, we have launched the state program “Construction” for three years ahead with a “listing” of all objects. This is also a solution that will help us carry out this work as planned. I can say that today, this project is one of the largest infrastructure projects in the country. Today, 34 thousand builders and four thousand pieces of equipment are involved in the work. The materials are produced on the territory of [new regions], and every year more and more, and this provides work to a large number of adjacent territories throughout our country.”

• Khusnulli: “An unprecedented amount of work has been done to restore social infrastructure. Listen to the numbers: 516 kindergartens were repaired and built, and 574 schools were built in preparation for this season. Moreover, some schools, such as school No. 15 in Mariupol, were rebuilt. Both regional chefs, teams of governors, and federal customers prepared more than 1,000 facilities for the school season. We work systematically.”

• Khusnullin: “The Ministry of Agriculture supports farmers of new subjects. 9.3 million tons of grain and oilseed crops were sold, and more than 800 units of agricultural equipment worth 4.7 billion were supplied. A top-rated program. Some colleagues have exceeded the program and are asking for additional volumes. The Ministry of Agriculture is very active. And, probably, a significant indicator is that the cultivated area has already reached 3.2 million hectares. Despite everything, farmers work, no matter how difficult it is.”

Outcomes and outlook:

A significant technological move, given that the “new regions” will be one of Putin’s electoral trump cards. He intends to focus on the development of these regions, on the successes of the so-called “SMO,” and to demonstrate that Russia cares about the newly annexed lands. Putin simultaneously gives a signal to “new regions” (their problems are heard and will definitely be helped), to the entire population of Russia (Russia is gradually “returning” the lands lost after 1991) and to the world (Russia is not going to leave the occupied territories).

4. Meeting of Vladimir Putin with Patriarch Kirill 

On Thursday, February 1, a meeting between Vladimir Putin and Patriarch Kirill took place in the Kremlin, during which the Russian President congratulated the Primate of the Russian Orthodox Church on the fifteenth anniversary of his enthronement. Judging by the information, the meeting did not last long and was more of a ceremonial nature. However, Putin and Patriarch Kirill managed to communicate one-on-one.

Outcomes and outlook:

Recently, Putin and Patriarch Kirill have demonstrated that their long-standing contradictions are a thing of the past. The misunderstandings of 10 years ago are over. In any case, the head of state and the head of the Church today act as partners. The church and state in Russia operate in the same vein, and, obviously, there are many issues of coexistence (personnel issues, issues of interaction between the church and political verticals locally, joint activities abroad, etc.).

5. Speech by Sergei Lavrov during the meeting of Sherpas/Sous-Sherpas of the BRICS countries

On Wednesday, January 31, the first Sherpa/Sous-Sherpa meeting of the BRICS countries took place this year, which is taking place as part of several events planned by the Russian Chairmanship. It is important to remember that Russia is chairing BRICS this year.

During the meeting, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov made another speech about geopolitical trends in which the West is given an increasingly modest place, and the prospects for the Global South are expanding every day. At the same time, Lavrov described current world processes as forming a more democratic, fair, multipolar world order, reflecting the cultural and civilizational diversity of the modern world and the right of every person to decide their destiny.

Key theses:

• “This process is historically objective. New powerful centres of economic growth, financial and political influence are emerging. It is developing not simply because the “collective West”, led by the United States, is trying with all its might to maintain its dominance (or what is left of it), which they have enjoyed for 500 years in human history. This domination was based on colonial wars, exploitation of other peoples and much more. This can be described as the privileged position of the “golden minority”. He is a “billion” but a “minority”. The West is trying to maintain this position and impose recognition of its “privileges” on everyone else – as we now say, the World Majority.”

• “The line of the “Western minority,” which includes a reliance on force and pressure on dissenters, provokes serious crises in international relations and multiplies the number of conflicts. Unhealthy trends are observed not only in the Euro-Atlantic but also in the Asia-Pacific region, where Washington and NATO are trying to introduce the logic of bloc confrontation.”

• “Many years of US attempts to monopolise mediation efforts in the Middle East settlement have led to a sharp escalation of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict and to a humanitarian catastrophe in the Gaza Strip. More than 25 thousand civilians have already died there, and three times as many have been injured. Tel Aviv’s refusal to implement the UN Security Council decision on the creation of a Palestinian state is being ignored. This is a direct challenge to the numerous existing decisions of the Council and the General Assembly of the World Organization.”

• “Recently, another meeting of the “Copenhagen format” according to the “Zelensky formula” took place in Davos, where some of your countries were represented. After this, I talked with colleagues from several friendly states, including about what role was assigned to the Global South in these “meetings.” There is only one goal – to establish that there is no alternative to the “peace formula.”

• “What is happening in Ukraine is a tragedy. The West “does not care” about the lives of Ukrainians. This is a “side effect,” as they say in the American army. The violation of all human rights and freedoms of national minorities by the criminal Kyiv regime is completely ignored. For Russians and Russian-speaking people, these rights are prohibited by law. At the moment, these are the results of the activities of Western “geopolitical engineers.”

• “Our strategic partners, including BRICS, are pursuing a pragmatic, independent foreign policy. In this way, they differ from the policies of the West, which imposes development models that exclusively suit it. The natural desire of new world centres to actively participate in making globally significant decisions is supported by the growing economic potential of all states represented here. It is no coincidence that political, trade, and investment activity is shifting from the Euro-Atlantic to Eurasia and the Asia-Pacific region.”

• “BRICS is an organising principle at the global level for the Global South and East, but not on a bloc basis (I want to especially emphasise this), but on the principles of mutual respect, sovereign choice of development path and ensuring in practice the key principle of the UN Charter – the sovereign equality of states.”

• “The statistics speak for themselves. The total GDP of the BRICS countries at purchasing power parity has already amounted to about a third of the corresponding world values. It has exceeded the indicators of the Group of Seven. BRICS accounts for 30% of the earth’s landmass, 45% of the world’s population, significant global oil and other resource production volumes, and about a quarter of global merchandise exports. Having such a rich potential, we cannot afford to be an outside observer, to follow in the wake of historical processes, especially considering the hopes that the countries of the Global South and East place in BRICS.”

• “It turned out that all these “sacred principles” of the free market could be torn off overnight and become an instrument of coercion for those not liked by Washington today. This fate can await any country. Regionalisation of the world’s economic development and logistics processes is a natural reflection not only of life in the corresponding parts of the globe. These processes will also accelerate because Washington and those who control the current monetary, financial, trade and global system have proven their inability to negotiate and unreliability. This healthy process frees countries in the Global South and East from the risks of manipulation by former colonial powers.”

Outcomes and outlook:

Sherpas are special representatives of the leaders of countries that are members of a particular association. That is, Lavrov met with special representatives of the leaders of the BRICS countries. Typically, the functions of Sherpas include either preparing for the next summit or developing a common position on several pressing issues. The announced agenda shows that the BRICS countries have been invited to consider a common platform on several international issues, including Ukraine-related issues. The statement by the Chinese Minister of Defense that followed this meeting about Russia’s support in the military conflict with Ukraine makes it clear that the BRICS countries are close to developing a common position, and it is clearly not in favour of Ukraine and is clearly aggressive and anti-Western.

6. Meeting of Sergei Lavrov with the CIS member states ambassadors 

On Thursday, February 1, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov held a traditional meeting of the Russian Foreign Minister with ambassadors of the CIS member states accredited in Russia. The Secretary General of the Commonwealth, Sergei Lebedev, also took part in it.

According to official data, during the meeting, the participants summarised the results of multilateral cooperation in the Commonwealth format in 2023 and discussed key tasks for the coming year. The meeting participants also exchanged views on current international and regional topics.

Outcomes and outlook:

The traditional meeting, held approximately once every few months, aims to create a common position on most issues on the international agenda. Another thing is that not all countries agree with such a dictate (Kazakhstan is increasingly declaring a separate position), but in general, meetings with ambassadors of the CIS states serve as a mechanism for forming a unified foreign policy position on several issues. It can be stated that Russia is receiving the first benefit from its chairmanship in the CIS and BRICS, but the final result will only be clear by the end of the year. Too many factors can radically change the situation and state of affairs.