MINSK, 7 June (BelTA) - The working group on cooperation between Belarus and Russia’s Smolensk Oblast discussed possibilities of bilateral cooperation in the energy sector and other sectors of the economy at a meeting on 7 June. The session was chaired by Belarusian Deputy Energy Minister Denis Moroz and Smolensk Oblast Vice Governor Alexey Streltsov, BelTA learned from the press service of the Energy Ministry.
“The Russian Federation is implementing a large-scale project on gas infrastructure development, and there is a need for specialists who can implement this work. Belarus as one of the countries in the post-Soviet space with the most developed gas infrastructure has certain competences in this part. We would like to find points of interaction with your region in this area,” Denis Moroz said.
According to the deputy energy minister, cooperation between the parties can also be effective in the development of the power grid infrastructure. “In general, Smolensk Oblast is one of the main trade and economic partners of Belarus among the Russian regions. We are interested in developing our cooperation and are ready to discuss specific cooperation projects,” he said.
Last year the trade between Belarus and Smolensk Oblast increased by 12.8% compared to 2021 and reached $4.9 billion. The upward trend in the mutual trade continues this year as well. In January-March 2023 the growth made up 8.4%.