Belarus has stated that it is a sovereign state that independently defines the format of its allied relations with Russia.

Axar.az reports that the Belarus Foreign Ministry made the remarks in response to comments by Armenian Parliament Speaker Alen Simonyan.

“We are proud of this cooperation and will not allow anyone to lecture us. Attempts to drag Minsk into domestic political disputes under the guise of so-called interference are a gross violation of basic diplomatic etiquette,” the ministry said.

Simonyan had earlier said, in reference to Russia, that Yerevan would not allow Armenia to be turned into a "province" and would not be governed like Belarus.