Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko talked to journalists of the Riga Children's Academy of Radio and Television before the opening ceremony of Slavianski Bazaar in Vitebsk.
On 15 July the participants of the Vitebsk 2022 song contest at the Slavianski Bazaar festival will learn their running order, BelTA learned from the directorate of the festival.
According to the head of state, when the festival was founded in the 1990s, no one could even think that the single Slavic world which strength lies in its thousand-year history would be put to the test politically and culturally.
“Of course, this festive, creative atmosphere is not the best time to talk about politics. Yet, politics has played a role in the history of Slavianski Bazaar from its very first day. And we did the right thing to retain and preserve our festival throughout the difficult period of the 1990s,” Aleksandr Lukashenko said.