Opinions & Interviews

MINSK, 29 October (BelTA) – The degree of trust between the Belarusian parliament and the European one has increased. Deputy Chairman of the House of Representatives of the National Assembly of Belarus Boleslav Pirshtuk made the statement as he met with a delegation of the European Parliament led by the Chair of the EP’s Delegation for Relations with Belarus Bogdan Zdrojewski on 29 October, BelTA has learned.

Boleslav Pirshtuk said: “I am pleased to state that positive changes have emerged in various areas, primarily stronger trust. We send a lot of delegations abroad. We participate in the work of various international organizations. I should say we feel changes towards positive things. I am convinced that only such trustful meetings, discussions about various topics will bring us closer to the goal we all aim for. I am grateful to see such a representative delegation in Belarus today. I am confident that the future of our relations depends on you, European parliamentarians, too.”

In his words, this year Belarus has taken steps to facilitate visa terms, extending the time foreigners are allowed to stay in the country without visas. “I am confident that the respect European MPs command is sufficient to encourage reciprocal steps so that Belarusians could move more freely in Europe,” said the MP.

Bogdan Zdrojewski agreed that the introduction of the visa-free travel program had been a boon for building up mutual trust. “It is evident that we now more actively partake in the dialogue, that new communications channels have been opened. We are ready for cooperation. As for the visa-free travels, Belarus has achieved tremendous success in this field,” he noted.