Belarus and Kazakhstan step up trade and economic cooperation

9 июня 2022
Our country is a supporter of multifaceted cooperation with Kazakhstan. This was stated today by First Deputy Prime Minister of Belarus Nikolai Snopkov at a meeting of the Intergovernmental Commission on Trade and Economic Cooperation held in Nur-Sultan. 

The parties summed up the work and identified promising areas of cooperation. The areas of interest include construction, science and technology, and industrial cooperation. Belarus is interested in all infrastructure projects, programs to update the fleet of passenger and municipal vehicles. The emphasis is on in-depth localization and expansion of the model range of tractors and combines. An important step in cooperation between the parties noted the construction of MTZ plant for the production of cabins for tractors in Kazakhstan. The production must start this year.

Mutual interest in agribusiness

Our experience in construction of dairy and vegetable complexes as well as in production of baby food is of interest in the agro-industrial complex. Our partners offered to create a Belarusian food hub for joint supplies to China. On the whole, Kazakhstan is among the top five importers of Belarusian goods. Thus, we have doubled the supplies of our confectionery products to this market, and increased the supply of vegetable oils eightfold. Since September, our country has expressed its readiness to resume supplies of sugar. A number of new contracts were signed during the visit. 

We have also reached agreement on many aviation issues. We have expanded opportunities for carriers in both countries. 

Artem Sikorsky, Director of Aviation Department of the Ministry of Transport of Belarus:

“We have expanded destinations for Kazakh carriers. These are all the airports of the Republic of Belarus - both national and regional. And we have also received certain freedoms of flights on the fifth degree of Kazakhstan and the possibility of combined flights without commercial load between two points of the Republic of Kazakhstan, which will make it possible both to expand the geography of flights of our national carrier and to offer our passengers new directions, new routes and combined traffic.”

On the whole the results of joint work are positive, the parties noted. The trade turnover in 2021 exceeded one billion dollars, an increase of almost one third. But the potential is much higher.