MINSK, 28 June (BelTA) – Belarus is ready to participate in the upgrade of Russia's key economic sectors, Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko said in his address to the participants of the 10th Forum of Regions of Belarus and Russia that is underway in Ufa, BelTA informs.
Aleksandr Lukashenko emphasized that economy underpins all social processes and is the foundation of cooperation. The previous forums of regions alone resulted in commercial contracts worth a total of almost $5 billion. “Indeed, the trade figures are encouraging. But it's too early to rest on our laurels. I am sure that we can do better. We need to increase our competitiveness by deepening industrial cooperation, to address issues of specialization, import substitution, primarily in microelectronics and other high-tech industries, to make the most of interregional trade, to develop transport and logistics corridors, and to find additional drivers to further integration processes,” the Belarusian head of state said.
“Belarus is ready to participate in the modernization of key sectors of the Russian economy, the creation of joint ventures. We have many ideas that can be interesting and relevant for Russian regions. These are cooperation projects in agriculture, construction, mechanical engineering, woodworking, equipment supplies, production of component parts, food production, light industry, space exploration, pharmaceutics,” Aleksandr Lukashenko said.
According to him, science, culture and education are also important elements of the Belarus-Russia cooperation.
There are 81 agreements on trade, economic, scientific, technical and cultural cooperation between the Republic of Belarus and 73 regions of the Russian Federation.
“The forum has become an effective dialogue platform where relevant decisions are made. It is important that representatives of various spheres - politics, business, culture, and science are at the forefront of developing these decisions. This is what they call people's diplomacy and it is proving its effectiveness. And the role of interregional cooperation in such processes is growing rapidly. In general, our positions remain unchanged - no barriers and restrictions in interaction. This is the basic principle of partnership. If disputes arise, they should be resolved promptly and in a constructive way,” the Belarusian leader said.
