Milinkevich Visiting St.Petersburg

Former presidential candidate Alyaksandr Milinkevich was expected to visit St.Petersburg on Friday to meet with local liberal politicians and journalists.

In particular, Mr. Milinkevich planned to brief Russian reporters about the stance of the Belarusian opposition on relations with Russia "under the circumstances of the regime's crisis in Belarus and a transition to the democratic system of state governance," the politician's press office said.

The leader of the Political Council of Belarus' united opposition forces planned to offer his view of the current state of Belarusian-Russian relations, as well as outline his vision of prospects for economic cooperation between the two countries, in particular oil and gas supplies, and the possible involvement of Russian investors in the privatization of Belarusian companies.

Mr. Milinkevich also was expected to raise the subjects of Belarusian-Russian integration, cooperation within the Commonwealth of Independent States and the Eurasian Economic Community, bilateral military ties, the presence of Russian military installations on Belarus' territory, and a joint air defense system.

The Belarusian politician was scheduled to meet with reporters of the Rosbalt news agency.

The visit had been organized by Russia's political organizations and the Belarusian community in St.Petersburg.