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Minsk devising new foreign policy, Lukashenko says

Aleksandr Lukashenko said that the Belarusian government was devising a new foreign policy.

"In fact, we are building a new foreign policy," official information sources quoted the Belarusian leader as saying at his meeting with Baleka Mbete, speaker of South Africa's National Assembly, in Minsk on October 20.

According to Mr. Lukashenko, Belarus' foreign policy has included new elements and Minsk currently regards South Africa as a key partner.

The Belarusian leader said the parliamentary speaker's visit continued a dialog recently established between the two countries, adding that both Belarus and South Africa shared approaches to the world's most pressing problems, including terrorism and poverty.

Mr. Lukashenko expressed hope that the visit would speed up the implementation of bilateral agreements reached earlier at top-level talks, official information sources said. //BelaPAN