Opinions & Interviews

MINSK, 29 January (BelTA) - The EU and Belarus have greatly expanded their cooperation, European Commissioner for Enlargement and European Neighborhood Policy Johannes Hahn said in the run-up to his visit to Minsk, BelTA learned from the EU's representation in Belarus.

“Since my last visit in 2015, relations between the EU and Belarus developed, and we extended our cooperation considerably. Cooperation in areas of common interest has been stepped up. The EU increased its support to regional and private sector, civil society and assistance in energy efficiency. The EU's efforts will continue to focus on increasing engagement with all sectors of Belarus society. My visit will focus on EU-Belarus relations, human rights as well as regional cooperation and our joint progress on the ‘20 deliverables for 2020’ which aim to bring tangible benefits to the daily lives of Belarusian citizens,” the commissioner said.

As it was reported, Johannes Hahn will travel to Belarus on 30 January. During the visit he is scheduled to hold meetings at different levels, including with top-ranking government officials and the minister of foreign affairs to discuss the urgent issues of Belarus-EU cooperation. The meetings will focus on the prospects of development of trade, economic and investment ties and the cooperation in international technical assistance. The parties will discuss the ways of strengthening the political dialogue within the framework of the EU-Belarus will discuss other aspects of mutual interest.

According to the EU Delegation, the parties will also discuss the deliverables agreed at the Eastern Partnership Summit and the deepening of EU-Belarus relations. This will also be reflected in the new EU-Belarus Partnership Priorities which will define further cooperation for the coming years.