The Pripyat River begins in the Kovel District of Volyn Oblast, Ukraine. The waterway flows for most of its length through Belarus, but drains into the Dnieper in Kyiv Oblast.
According to BELTA
On November 19, Alexander Lukashenko held a meeting with officials regarding the strategic program for the development of Belarusian Polesia up to 2030. According to official sources, the implementation of the project will be led by Mykhailo Rusiy – the president’s representative in the Brest Region.
During the discussion he drew attention to the water resources of the region’s main water artery – the Pripyat River, which after crossing the border with Ukraine flows into the Dnieper.
“Where do these waters go? It would be good if Ukraine used the Dnieper waters to the full… These waters flow into the sea. So why don’t we today think that this water should be ‘returned’ where and when it is needed?”
– Alexander Lukashenko
According to the president, the leaders of Gomel Region had previously proposed returning to the topic of the Dnieper-Bug Canals, and he instructed the head of the Gomel Regional Executive Committee, Ivan Krupko, to submit the corresponding proposal.
“When he made this proposal, my eyes went dark. Because we simply don’t have that much money,” said Alexander Lukashenko.
The canal system in Polesia connects the Dnieper with the Vistula River, which flows into the Baltic Sea. According to the E-40 architectural-economic project, which was financially supported by the European Union, it could transport up to six million tonnes of cargo per year, but the war in Ukraine and the severed economic ties between Belarus and Poland halted its implementation.
The history of plans to turn water flows from Siberia southward dates back to the early 1980s: the Soviet Union’s initiative was driven by the needs for water resources for agriculture in Central Asia. It required enormous financial investments, and also threatened ecological consequences for Siberia’s environment. It was ultimately halted after the political changes in the USSR during the Gorbachev era.
The phrase “turning Siberian rivers” became a symbol of the Soviet leadership’s wastefulness.
Context and Consequences
This story demonstrates the importance of rational planning in the use of water resources and intergovernmental cooperation to avoid repeating past mistakes and to preserve the life-giving water lifelines for future generations.
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