Belarus proposes seasonal simplified border crossing for Ukrainians to gather wild forest products

The Belarusian side is taking steps to organize a seasonal simplified entry into the Republic of Belarus for Ukrainian citizens living near the border, for the purpose of gathering wild forest products on Belarusian territory.

The State Border Committee of Belarus is ready to organize simplified border crossing through three checkpoints: 'Mutvitsa', 'Khinichev', and 'Selische'.

This concerns purely practical matters. People who have collected mushrooms and berries for many years in the 'Ol'manskiye Bolota' nature reserve in the Stolin district of the Brest region will have the opportunity to do so again this season.

A note with corresponding proposals was delivered today to Ivan Novitsky, Chargé d'Affaires of Ukraine in the Republic of Belarus, at the Belarusian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

We emphasize: this is not a political gesture. This is a rational, life-driven proposal in the interests of ordinary people living near the border. The forest is a significant support for their household economy. We understand this and offer a well-established mechanism to preserve their traditional way of life without creating artificial barriers.

We await a response from the Ukrainian side.

We are confident that even under current difficult conditions, such steps are a normal practice of good-neighborly relations.