Фото: пресс-служба правительства
Belarus and Kyrgyzstan will hold a regions forum. The event is scheduled to take place in Minsk this autumn, Belarusian Prime Minister Aliaksandr Turchyn said in Bishkek.
“Interregional cooperation remains an important element of our bilateral interaction. Direct contacts between the regions of our countries have been established and are being successfully implemented. We believe it is necessary to further expand this practice by using new formats of cooperation, such as regions forums. Work is currently underway to prepare and develop the agenda of the first Belarus-Kyrgyzstan Regions Forum, which will be held in Minsk in the autumn of this year,” he said during talks with his Kyrgyz counterpart Adylbek Kasymaliev.
Turchyn also expressed readiness to increase participation in joint projects, share technologies and provide training opportunities for specialists from Kyrgyzstan. According to him, a joint industrial commission has been established to identify the most viable projects. One of them could be the joint production of power transformers.
The Belarusian side is ready to take part in the modernisation of Kyrgyzstan’s infrastructure. Turchyn said he expects Belarusian machinery to be used in mineral extraction projects. Minsk is also ready to offer favourable export financing terms.
Another issue under discussion is the launch of a direct flight connection.
“Trade in food products remains an important area of cooperation. We welcome the development in Bishkek of a network of specialised retail outlets selling Belarusian food products. At the same time, we support increasing supplies of Kyrgyz agricultural products to the Belarusian market,” Aliaksandr Turchyn added.
According to him, the two countries should also explore cooperation in sugar beet seed production. Kyrgyzstan’s climate conditions make such production possible, unlike in Belarus.