Belarus president says Putin has offered compensation for Russian tax changes

Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko said on Friday that his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin has offered to compensate Minsk for budget losses arising from changes to Russian oil taxation. The compensation could amount to $300 million, Lukashenko told reporters after a phone call with Putin, adding Moscow was also ready to keep oil supply terms at last year's level.

Belarus lost $330 million in 2019 due to changes in Russian taxation, Belarusian Prime Minister Sergei Rumas said this month. Moscow used to send crude oil and oil products to Minsk with no export fee under a duty-free deal between Russia, Belarus, and Kazakhstan. However, it amended its tax code on January 1 last year to halt that arrangement.