MOSCOW. Aug 27 (Interfax) - Russian President Vladimir Putin has said he expects all parties involved in the confrontation in Belarus will have enough common sense to avoid excesses.
"Of course, we're not indifferent to what's happening there, but this is primarily an affair of the Belarusian people. And we assume that all parties involved in this process will have enough common sense to find a solution peacefully, without excesses," Putin said in an interview with journalist Sergei Brilev, shown on the Rossiya-24 (VGTRK) television channel.
"Certainly, if people have taken to the streets, everyone should reckon with that, listen to that, and respond," he said.
"By the way, the Belarusian president has said he is willing to consider the possibility of carrying out constitutional reform, adopting a new constitution, and holding new parliamentary and presidential elections based on this new constitution," Putin said.
"No one should go beyond the framework of the current [Belarusian] Constitution," he said.
The Belarusian Constitutional Court has ruled that the establishment of supra-constitutional bodies not envisioned by the constitution, which "are trying to seize power, is absolutely unacceptable, and it's hard not to agree with that," Putin said.
"We [Russia] are behaving in a much more restrained and neutral manner toward the events in Belarus than numerous other countries, both European and American; take, for instance, the United States," he said.
Russia cannot be indifferent to what is happening in Belarus, as "this is a country close to us, perhaps the closest to us in ethnic, linguistic, cultural, spiritual, or any other terms," Putin said.
Additionally, Russia and Belarus maintain close industrial cooperation, and more than 90% of all Belarusian agricultural exports go to the Russian market, he said.