OREANDA-NEWS. On March 11, 2009 President of the Republic of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko left for the Republic of Armenia on a working visit. The agreement regarding the visit was reached in the course of the recent telephone conversation between the presidents of the two countries, reported the Official website http://president.gov.by.

The programme of the visit includes talks with the Armenian leadership and meetings with representatives of business circles. The talks will centre on the urgent issues of the bilateral relations, first of all trade and economic co-operation considering the influence of the world financial and economic crisis, and interaction between Belarus and Armenia within the framework of the integration institutions in the territory of the former Soviet Union.

Special attention will be paid to cementing regional ties, to co-operation in the energy sector, participation of Belarus in some of Armenia’s national programmes aimed at further development of the Armenian economy, to building up industrial co-operation, to promotion of tourism and cultural ties between the two peoples.

In 2008 Belarus-Armenia trade increased 18.9 per cent from 2007 to US28.2 million, which is far below the true economic potential of the two countries.