On 18 January, in the course of a meeting with the Chairman of the State Border Committee, Igor Rachkovsky, President Alexander Lukashenko expressed his concern about the information coming from the Belarus-Russia border.

The President said he was troubled by the information coming from the Belarus-Russia border in the light of the establishing of the Customs Union which united three countries: Belarus, Russia and Kazakhstan. "Contrary to our agreements, supposedly there has been a tightening of control at the border," said Alexander Lukashenko. He gave directions to check this information and report back.