By Ilona Krasutskaya: Yesterday, during the official visit of Alexander Lukashenko to India, the parties agreed that the Belarus—India relations have been given momentum and will develop at a new level.
The Belarusian President held talks and a series of meetings with a number of high-ranking Indian officials, including the Minister of Foreign Affairs, the Vice-President, the Prime Minister and the President of India.
This Monday, a delegation from Belarusian attended a business forum in New Delhi that brought together over 200 participants – representatives of major companies from Belarus and India. Ten agreements and memorandums were signed, and in the future, these contracts and business projects will be worth tens and hundreds of millions of dollars.
Bobruiskagromash and Gomselmash agreed to set up a joint venture for the production of agricultural machinery and harvesters in India. Another joint venture will be established in partnership with MAZ for the production and maintenance of cars and buses. BelAZ will return to India as well – heavyweight machinery will be assembled in India. The first batch will be assembled next year.
Belkommunmash intends to gain a foothold in the Indian market, too. Electric buses from Belarus will appear in the streets of New Delhi.
An agreement between Belarus and India on investments was initialed, too. The Belarusian President noted that Belarus is ready to provide the most favourable and preferential terms for Indian investors.
An agreement was reached to increase the supply of potash fertilizers. For the Belarusian potash company the Indian market is a strategic one. The memorandum provides for the supply of over 4 million tons over the next six years.
Among the other proposals was one on setting up a scientific and technological industrial park in Belarus. New projects are expected to be launched in tourism. Starting 1 January, Belarus will launch the programme India Friendly.
In recent years, India has changed remarkably. Today, it is not just a growing world economy, but also an influential global player. India is member of the G20, the Shanghai Cooperation Organization, and the BRICS. Therefore, bringing cooperation with India to a fundamentally new level was one of the tasks of the official visit of Alexander Lukashenko.
For several years now, the trade turnover has stood at over 400 million dollars. There are new opportunities in trade now, including the creation of a free trade zone between India and the Eurasian Economic Union. Alexander Lukashenko promised the Indian Prime Minister every support in the speedy resolution of this issue.
There are no political and diplomatic contradictions between Belarus and India, therefore the Belarusian President urges the foreign ministries of the two countries to cooperate more in economy. Now that the two countries have agreed their cooperation philosophy, the time has come to launch joint projects.
Also, Alexander Lukashenko invited the Indian Prime Minister to visit Belarus in the near future. A meeting of an intergovernmental commission will be held first – it will become a stage in the preparation for the visit of the Prime Minister of India to Belarus.
