Lukashenko made one of his long-standing desires come true on visiting Irkutsk
During his visit to the Irkutsk Region of Russia, President of Belarus Aleksandr Lukashenko got acquainted with the beauty of Lake Baikal, BelTA reports
Together with Irkutsk Region Governor Igor Kobzev and Russian President's Plenipotentiary Representative to the Siberian Federal District Anatoly Seryshev, the Head of State took a boat trip along the Circum-Baikal Railway.
The Circum-Baikal Railway section running along the lake shore near the foot of the Olkhinsky plateau from the town of Slyudyanka to the village of Baikal is a unique monument of engineering art. In 1902-1905, it was literally cut into the rocks above Lake Baikal. There are 424 engineering structures per 84km of the road, including 39 tunnels with a total length of almost 9km, 47 stone galleries, and 14km of support walls. At the beginning of the 20th century, this section of the route was called ‘the golden buckle of the steel belt of Russia’.
The President repeatedly voiced his desire to visit the unique natural places of Russia, including Lake Baikal.
"Lake Baikal, Altai, Primorye, Sakhalin, and Kamchatka are worth visiting – to look at this miracle of nature," Aleksandr Lukashenko noted at a meeting with the Primorsky Krai Governor, Oleg Kozhemyako, in Minsk in September 2020.
A couple of years later, in April 2022, the Head of State once again turned to this topic during his visit to the Far East. The Belarusian leader said that it would be interesting for him to visit Kamchatka, Sakhalin, Magadan, Chukotka, Altai, and Lake Baikal in Russia. "This is of great interest to me. I can more or less imagine everything else," he explained.
Aleksandr Lukashenko stressed that, in the years of his presidency, he had travelled all over the world and can assert that Russia is a unique place. "There is no better resort to ski than Sochi," the Head of State gave an example. He also paid special attention to the clean air and ecological friendliness of such places as Primorsky Krai, “It is only here possible to get some fresh air.”
Aleksandr Lukashenko was recommended to visit these incredible places by his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin as well. "There are so many interesting places in Russia, such beauty that I have not seen. I want to see it. He [Vladimir Putin] suggested me to go to Altai, Baikal, and Kamchatka, stay there, take a look. Russia is open to me, it is very interesting to me," the Head of State said in an interview.
