Opinions & Interviews

Ambassador hails great progress in Belarus-China relations over 30 years

An archive photo

MINSK, 20 January (BelTA) - Belarus and China have been developing cooperation consistently and confidently for the past 30 years, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Belarus to the People's Republic of China Yuri Senko said as he spoke at the event to launch the monograph by Doctor of History Valery Matsel "Belarus - China: 30 Years on the Path of Friendship and Mutually Beneficial Cooperation" at the Academy of Public Administration under the aegis of the Belarusian President in Minsk on 20 January, on the day when the two countries celebrate 30 years of diplomatic relations, BelTA has learned.

A lot has been achieved over the 30-year history of diplomatic relations between Belarus and China, the diplomat said. "The level of cooperation has grown from interaction on key issues to the relations of trust-based comprehensive strategic partnership and mutually beneficial cooperation. Today, we are moving towards another historic milestone in the relations, namely the ironclad brotherhood and all-weather partnership," the ambassador stressed.

He noted that in addition to the Belarusian embassy in Beijing and the Chinese embassy in Minsk, there are three Belarusian consulates general in China. Literally on the eve of the New Year, an agreement was signed to open the fourth consulate - in the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region.

Since 1992, trade with China has grown more than 130 times. "The Republic of Belarus has become one of the key participants in the Belt and Road initiative," the head of the diplomatic mission continued. “The China-Belarus industrial park Great Stone already hosts 85 resident companies from 15 countries, which confirms its international status. Some 43 resident companies work with the Chinese capital. More than 80% of all freight trains on the China-Europe route pass through Belarus."

The construction of international-class sports facilities, namely a swimming pool and a football stadium, has got underway in Belarus, with the help of China. Thanks to the assistance of the People's Republic of China and the Geely company, Belarus has launched the production of Geely cars. The country is busy implementing another innovative project - the National Biotechnology Corporation. Belarus was the first in the Eurasian region to start the production of traditional Chinese medicine.

Ambassador Yuri Senko stressed that a high level of cooperation was achieved due to the great work of Belarusian and Chinese specialists. “I can also say with confidence that the current level of cooperation between the two countries has been achieved largely thanks to the personal attention of our leaders – Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko and Chinese President Xi Jinping. Ahead of marking the 30th anniversary of the diplomatic relations between the two countries, Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko signed Directive No.9 on the development of relations with China, which reflected the great attention of the Belarusian authorities to cooperation with the People's Republic of China. The document defines the lines of action - from the creation of a joint film to ramping up investments. By implementing this document, we will bring our relations to a qualitatively new level,” the ambassador believes.

“Unfortunately, the current situation across the world is far from being ideal. Certain countries have forgotten how to hear each other, threatening humanity with irreversible consequences. Cooperation between Belarus and China stands out against this background. Belarus has never deviated from its commitments to the People's Republic of China over 30 years of diplomatic relations. We have been consistently building relations with our strategic partner. Today we can say with confidence that our cooperation has passed all the tests of time and is indeed a model of relations between the states,” the diplomat continued.

“It is very important that the cooperation between Belarus and China is in constant momentum, quickly adapting to new realities. I am firmly convinced that the multifaceted Belarusian-Chinese cooperation that has a huge potential will continue to deepen thanks to our joint efforts and cover new areas of interaction,” said Yuri Senko.

Valery Matsel's monograph “Belarus-China: 30 Years on the Way of Friendship and Mutually Beneficial Cooperation” has been published in Russian and Chinese. It examines the whole range of Belarusian-Chinese relations from the moment they were established to the present time. The book is based on the materials of the National Archives of the Republic of Belarus and the Archives of the Belarusian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Valery Matsel is head of the Department of International Relations at the Academy of Public Administration under the aegis of the President of the Republic of Belarus, Doctor of Historical Sciences, professional diplomat, who has worked in China for a long time.

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