As he heard out a report from Chairman of the Federation of Trade Unions of Belarus Yuri Senko, Belarus President Aleksandr Lukashenko mentioned Belarusian-Chinese relations taking into account the fact that the trade union leader had been Belarus’ ambassador to China for several years, BelTA has learned.
Aleksandr Lukashenko said: “Your Chinese experience is very important for me. Because trade unions can walk away from the reality of life at times and come up with unwarranted demands. I always support workers. It is truly the right approach. But you know, in order to demand something, you have to work hard. And you’ve seen how the Chinese work. Certainly, our people don’t work as hard and it is unlikely they will. But if our performance and volumes were close to those of Chinese workers, I think we could be several times richer. This is why this experience is very important for the trade union leader himself.”
The president wondered how Yuri Senko had settled down after returning from China and whether he had any personal questions.
In turn, Yuri Senko thanked Aleksandr Lukashenko for the unique experience accumulated over the years of working in China. He assured that the three years had not been wasted. The diplomat visited about 30 provinces, virtually the entire China. “I know the situation. People everywhere in China know us, hear us, understand us, appreciate our friendship and our relations. I am convinced that the solid friendship will last for a long time and will produce results,” the FTUB chairman said.
Aleksandr Lukashenko warned that in addition to taking care of his main job as the FTUB chairman Yuri Senko will be in demand as an expert and even a participant of some processes relating to Belarus’ relations with the People’s Republic of China.
The same approach may be used to customs affairs since Yuri Senko headed the State Customs Committee before moving to China. “You worked there for a long time. And we will always need your fresh outlook on various matters. An independent outlook. Maybe even an alternative one,” the Belarusian leader remarked.
“I am always ready to fulfill assigned tasks,” Yuri Senko assured.
