MINSK, May 23 (Xinhua) -- Belarus is holding talks to import oil from Kazakhstan to diversify oil deliveries, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko said Thursday.
The issue with oil supply from Kazakhstan to Belarus not only relates to the two sides, but also Russia in terms of transit, Lukashenko said while meeting with Kazakhstan's Ambassador to Belarus Yermukhamet Yertysbayev.
The president said he hopes to find a solution to this issue and suggested stepping up the talks.
At the end of 2018, Belarus began to intensify efforts to find alternative oil suppliers against the background of the implementation of a tax maneuver in Russia's oil sector. Once the maneuver is completed, Belarus will buy oil from Russia at world prices.
In recent years, Belarus imported oil from Russia without paying export duties, which increased the profitability of its oil refining.
Lukashenko will visit Kazakhstan to attend the summit of the Eurasian Economic Union scheduled for May 29 in Nur-Sultan.
