Opinions & Interviews

FM: Belarus aims to maintain momentum in cooperation with Uzbekistan

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MINSK, 11 April (BelTA) - Belarus aims to maintain momentum in cooperation with Uzbekistan in all areas, Belarusian Minister of Foreign Affairs Sergei Aleinik said as he held a meeting with his Uzbek counterpart Bakhtiyor Saidov in Minsk on 11 April, BelTA has learned.

Sergei Aleinik emphasized that this was the first official visit of the Uzbek foreign minister in the history of Belarusian-Uzbek relations to follow up on the high-level agreements between the two countries.

“I am pleased to note that the relations between our countries throughout history have been exclusively friendly, trustworthy and fraternal,” the Belarusian minister of foreign affairs said. “Minsk and Tashkent are united by a shared history, common interests in international politics, state approaches to economic development and building a welfare, stable and prosperous state and society.”

Sergei Aleinik noted: “In the years of independence, our states have managed not only to lay a serious foundation for Belarus-Uzbekistan cooperation, but also to build strong ties, including in the integration associations - the CIS and the EAEU.”

In his words, the two countries have significantly intensified multi-level interstate interaction, maintain an open, trustful and meaningful dialogue at the highest and high levels, develop ties between the parliaments, business, and the youth.

The minister drew attention to the fact that the bilateral trade between Belarus and Uzbekistan was growing. “Over the past four years, the two countries have witnessed a 2.5-fold increase in trade. This positive trend continues this year, with the trade growing by 7.5% in the first two months. We will be increasing our trade in line with the tasks set by the two heads of state,” Sergei Aleinik said.

He considers important the role of the intergovernmental commission on trade and economic cooperation, which successfully works and coordinates the activities of sectoral bodies.

“We actively interact in international organizations, including the UN. We look forward to further interaction within the SCO and are grateful for the support of Belarus' application for its membership,” the Belarusian minister of foreign affairs said.

He also emphasized the importance of Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko's official visit to Uzbekistan this year, which gave a serious impetus to the further expansion and strengthening of Belarus-Uzbekistan relations.

“In fact, it was a historic visit that brought our relations to a qualitatively new level, laid the foundation for further movement within the framework of the roadmap that was signed during this visit. We view the results of this visit through the prism of further expansion of interaction between our countries and a strategic character of our relations. We are determined to fulfill all the agreements as quickly and fully as possible. We expect the same active line from our Uzbek partners,” Sergei Aleinik said.

According to the Belarusian minister of foreign affairs, the visit of the Uzbek minister of foreign affairs is kicking off a series of reciprocal visits to Belarus on various lines, and of course, Belarus expects a return visit of the president of Uzbekistan.

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