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Among the most pressing issues, the diplomat mentioned the promotion of Belarusian products to African and Asian countries with the help of Latvian partners. For instance, the Latvian company Kombainserviss set up a joint enterprise in Mauritania in 2015, and has already supplied 50 MTZ, MAZ and Amkodor vehicles to this country.

“Our cooperation with Latvian engineering companies in construction technologies and architecture opens up opportunities for a successful joint entry into the construction services markets of the CIS and Europe,” Marina Dolgopolova noted.

In her words, the potential for strengthening bilateral cooperation in the services sector is far from being fully exhausted. Belarus’ initiative to harmonize the digital markets of the European Union and the countries of Eastern Partnership has given a new impetus to the Belarusian-Latvian cooperation. The ICT associations of Belarus and Latvia are currently drawing up specific cooperation projects.

Given the growing consumer demand on the Latvian market, Marina Dolgopolova sees great potential for cooperation of Belarusian exporters with large shopping centers and retail networks. “For instance, this year we have launched a large-scale project with the Icelandic group of companies Jysk. Our aim is to distribute a wide range of Belarus-made interior decoration products via 30 stores in the Baltic states. Another objective is to establish a retail chain of Jysk in Belarus,” Marina Dolgopolova said.

“To increase the number of exchange transactions, it is necessary to pay special attention to the development of exchange logistics and examination of goods. When offering a product to our clients, we need to ensure its high quality and suggest the most economically sound delivery scheme,” the diplomat stressed.

Latvia is among the top ten Belarus’ trading partners and investors. In 2015, mutual trade in goods and services exceeded $800 million. Belarusian exports to Latvia are well-diversified. More than 400 products are exported to the Baltic country. The countries also cooperate closely in investment sector. The number of joint projects has reached 3,150.

Apart from traditional transportation services, today Belarus actively exports to Latvia computer services, telecommunication and information services, and also business services.