Opinions & Interviews

MINSK, 2 June (BelTA) – Belarusian enterprises and organizations are ready to partake in designing and building residential, manufacturing and sport assets in Russia’s Pskov Oblast. Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko made the statement as he met with Pskov Oblast Governor Andrei Turchak on 2 June, BelTA has learned.

Among promising fields of cooperation between Belarus and Pskov Oblast Alexander Lukashenko mentioned civil engineering, agriculture, and production sector. “Belarusian organizations are ready to take part in the designing and construction of residential, manufacturing, and sport assets — you pay a lot of attention to those just like Belarus does — as well as roads using machines and materials made by Belarusian manufacturers,” the President told the Governor.

“I believe that the Pskov Oblast administration will soon decide on a pilot project that envisages the construction of residential premises by Belarusians,” added the head of state. Alexander Lukashenko remarked that Belarus suggests this kind of cooperation to many regions of Russia. “It is a good monument of our cooperation. There is no better monument because people will live in those buildings,” said the President.

Belarusian specialists are ready to utilize their expertise to build infrastructure for the 2017 Youth/Junior World Championship. Alexander Lukashenko pointed out that Belarus has experience of accommodating this kind of competitions. He presumed that the Pskov Oblast delegation would be interested in getting familiar with the facilities built in Belarus. The head of state underlined that he had received a letter from the International Biathlon Union, which praised the organization of the world championship in Belarus in 2015.

“The border between Pskov Oblast and Belarus is 300km long. One can say that the border is kind of a growth point to expand contacts. Not only with Pskov Oblast but with entire Russia thanks to our friends that live in Pskov Oblast. The example of cooperation between Vitebsk Oblast and Pskov Oblast is a vivid testimony to that,” noted Alexander Lukashenko. The oblasts as well as individual districts of the oblasts have signed agreements on cooperation. Ties in the sphere of youth policy, education, culture, sport and tourism develop particularly fast. “Over the last five years trade between Vitebsk Oblast and Pskov Oblast more than quadrupled and is close to $50 million now. We export about 300 products,” said the head of state. Yet Alexander Lukashenko mentioned concerns about the low volume of trade between Belarus and Pskov Oblast. Apart from that, the trade volume has been falling since 2012. According to Alexander Lukashenko, the Belarusian side views the visit of the Pskov Oblast delegation as timely and necessary because the situation has to be addressed.