OREANDA-NEWS. On July 3 the people of Belarus celebrate Independence Day of the Republic of Belarus. On this occasion we cite an interview of Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Belarus to Turkmenistan YU. MALUMOV:

This year we celebrate the 17th anniversary of independence of our country. The major political outcome of our independence is peace and interethnic concord that the Belarusian society has respond to the well through-out policy of the Belarusian state lead by President Aleksander Grigoryevich Lukashenko – the policy aimed at harmonizing the interests of the social and ethnic groups, guaranteeing the high quality of the life to the Belarusian people. The priority trends include fostering export of goods and services, housing construction, agro-industrial sector, protection of the rights and freedoms of citizens. Along with social and economic development paramount significance is attached to building the state, enforcing the law and order and combating crime.

Turkmenistan is traditionally friendly trade partners of the Republic of Belarus. The absence of any political discord and the similarity of the countries’ approaches and positions to the situation in the world have favoured development of constructive Belarusian-Turkmen comprehensive collaboration at various levels. Implementing the top level agreements achieved in May 2002 over 2,500 Belarusian МТЗ-1221 and МТЗ-80Х tractors were delivered to Turkmenistan in 2007.

Trucks produced at the Minsk automobile plant and Amkodor road-building machines are known well in Turkmenistan. The mutually advantageous contacts between Turkmen and Belarusian partners are expanded in various fields of national economies. The Belarusian goods exported to the Turkmen market include transformers, lifts, bicycles and motorcycles, matches and furniture, pharmaceutical products. A broad range of the goods produced in Belarus was presented at the National Exposition of the Republic of Belarus and the White City – Ashgabat International Exhibition on April 23-25, 2008. Belarus was represented by over 200 Belarusian at this exhibition.

Traditionally, Belarus imports cotton and cotton yarn, textile goods, rawstock, wool, propylene polymer, carbon, etc from Turkmenistan

It should be noted that the year 2007 was marked with considerable harmonization of the relations between the Republic of Belarus and Turkmenistan. In July 2007 Vice Premier of the Republic of Belarus A. N. Kosintz, who co-chaired the intergovernmental Belarusian-Turkmen commission for trade and economic co-operation, visited Turkmenistan. The agreements in various fields of co-operation were achieved upon concluding the talks with President G. M. Berdimuhamedov and the cabinet ministers of Turkmenistan. The direct air services established between Ashgabat and Minsk last August enabled to intensify business and tourism, facilitated the contacts among relatives and friends.

In November 2007 President G. M. Berdimuhamedov and Prime Minister of the Republic of Belarus S. S. Sidorskiy held the bilateral talks in the framework of the meeting of the Council of the CIS Heads of the Governments in Ashgabat. The sides discussed a broad range of the bilateral relations and specified the particular fields of mutually advantageous co-operation.

The first meeting of the intergovernmental Belarusian-Turkmen commission for trade and economic co-operation was held in Minsk in January 2008. The Turkmen delegation visited the leading enterprises and organisations of Belarus, had the working meetings and talks on the mutually advantageous fields of co-operation. The final protocol reflected the current issues of bilateral co-operation (holding of an exhibition, drafting of the bilateral agreements, updating of the legal base, exchange of the delegations, etc) as well as the strategic long-range goals (co-operation in construction industry, deliveries of Belarusian machines to Turkmenistan, establishment of the trade and logistics centres, etc). Much of it has been done and the consistent work is carried out to achieve the goals.

In May 2008 President of the Republic of Belarus A. G. Likashenko and Vice Premier of Turkmenistan R. O. Meredov held the bilateral talks in the framework of the meeting of the Council of the CIS Heads of the Governments in Minsk. The invitation to President G. M. Berdimuhamedov to pay an official visit to the Republic of Belarus was conveyed during the talks.

Positively evaluating the dynamics of the bilateral relations between the Republic of Belarus and Turkmenistan it should be noted that the potential of co-operation is far from being exhausted, first of all in the sphere of trade. Currently, the economies of Belarus and Turkmenistan are at a stage of sustainable growth and their complementarity can and must be employed in full in the interests of both nations.