An official visit of the Belarus president to a European Union country took place in mid-November 2019. It was the first visit over a lengthy period of time. Aleksandr Lukashenko went to Austria. He mentioned Austria’s support for Belarus’ efforts to promote relations with the European Union, which was Belarus’ second most significant trade partner at that time. Mutual trade was mentioned as one condition for further successful cooperation.
Natalya Eismont said: “As far as I remember, preparations for the visit to Austria in 2019 were accompanied by serious optimism. As a matter of principle, the background was very good, very positive. As I’ve already said, the president flew to Austria with a serious and positive mood. It was an extremely intense visit. The president held an entire series of meetings, negotiations at the top level and what not. Our standard approach is to make the most out of a visit. The president works like that and he always urges everyone against tourist trips.”
