Makei: Belarusian language needs more attention
Uladzimir Makei at the Minsk Dialogue forum / Belarusian MFA
The Belarusian language needs more attention from the Belarusian state. Yet, it does not mean that the Russian language is going to be ousted from some spheres in Belarus, Belarusian Minister for Foreign Affairs Uladzimir Makei told journalists during lobby interviews at the Minsk Dialogue international conference on European security.
"There are two state languages in Belarus: Russian and Belarusian. The is no other country using Russian as the second state language, I believe. It means a lot. The fact that fewer people are speaking Belarusian nowadays is a fact that needs attention. It is natural if we want to preserve the nation, people and state.
Yet, it does not mean that the Russian language will be ousted from some spheres or that we are against Russia or the Russian people. This is normal. Nobody is complaining about the fact that some other post-Soviet countries are refusing from the Russian language and switching to the Roman letters,” Makei said.
The Minister has commented on the rumors about Russians being offended in Belarus – such articles have been appearing in the Russian media lately. “These are absolutely ungrounded, crazy and stupid attacks on Belarus,” Makei said.
