MINSK, March 2 (Xinhua) -- Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko had strong words for a regional economic bloc on Friday, saying his country faced unfair trade restrictions.
Lukashenko said his country cannot freely sell its goods within the Eurasian Economic Union, which includes Belarus, Armenia, Russia, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan.
Lukashenko stressed that Belarus should persistently defend its interests in the bloc.
"I am not talking about milk, which became a barefaced political instrument recently," Lukashenko said, referring to Russia's restrictive measures on the supply of Belarusian dairy products to the Russian market.
Lukashenko early stated that Belarus would respond to Russia's ban on Belarusian milk. "Such things will not remain unanswered. We just will not tolerate it," said the president.
The Russian side planned to ban the supply of industrial dairy from Belarus beginning Feb. 26, citing violations of veterinary requirements. After consultations with the Belarusian side, the ban was postponed until March 6.
Belarus is the largest supplier of dairy products to Russia.