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Belarusian BelAZ to ship 15-20 haul trucks to Turkey

Deputy Prime Minister of Belarus Igor Lyashenko and Turkish Minister of Agriculture and Forestry Bekir Pakdemirli

ANKARA, 16 April (BelTA) – The Belarusian automobile engineering company BelAZ is getting ready to ship 15-20 haul trucks to Turkey. Each of them costs nearly $1 million, BelTA learned from Deputy Prime Minister of Belarus Igor Lyashenko after negotiations of Belarus President Aleksandr Lukashenko and Turkey President Recep Tayyip Erdogan on 16 April.

The official said: “The Turkish side is interested in buying 130-tonne BelAZ trucks. The contract is expected to be signed in H1 2019.”

After the negotiations Aleksandr Lukashenko and Recep Tayyip Erdogan stated that the countries intend to increase the mutual trade turnover up to $1.5 billion within the next few years. According to Igor Lyashenko, the removal of customs duties on imports to Turkey could be the key stimulating factor in achieving the goal. “Yes, it is a complicated matter. We’ve agreed that a commission will be set up. It will look into the application of these duties for every commodity and into what can be done taking into account mutual interests,” he remarked.

The Belarusian side is also interested in setting up enterprises in Turkey to assemble Belarusian machines, vehicles, and equipment. An enterprise to assemble Belarusian tractors in the Turkish industrial zone Kirikkale 80km away from Ankara is supposed to start working in July. The enterprise has been established with assistance of Azerbaijan where MTZ tractors have been assembled for many years already. The investments will exceed $15 million, however, a seven-year tax exemption will compensate for the costs.

The Belarusian companies Gomselmash and Amkodor may use the same site to set up assembly enterprises of their own. These matters will be discussed with Turkish partners, Igor Lyashenko added.

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