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PM: Cuba counts on Belarus’ help while developing its agricultural industry
MINSK, 10 November (BelTA) – Cuba has plans to put its agricultural industry on a stronger footing with the help of Belarus, Cuban Prime Minister Manuel Marrero Cruz told journalists following his meeting with Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko on 10 November, BelTA has learned.
The Cuban head of government told the journalists about the outcomes of his talks with the Belarusian president. First of all, the prime minister conveyed greetings from Cuban people to Belarusian people. “I also want to convey the most cordial greetings to the president of Belarus from Army General Raúl Castro Ruz and President Miguel Mario Diaz-Canel Bermudez,” he said. “We share the opinion that we are not just friendly nations, but fraternal countries. We also absolutely agree with Aleksandr Lukashenko that our trade and economic cooperation lags far behind the high level of political contacts between our countries,” Manuel Marrero Cruz remarked.
The prime minister noted that Belarus and Cuba are good allies on international platforms. “Our key agenda is to make sure that our trade and economic interaction will catch up with political cooperation,” he said.
“We have done a great deal of work, identified priority areas of interaction; it remains to specify bilateral projects,” Manuel Marrero Cruz added commenting on the outcomes of the talks with Aleksandr Lukashenko. “First of all, Cuba seeks to develop its agricultural sector and ramp up food production. We know that your country produces more food than it consumes,” said Manuel Marrero Cruz. “We are now considering joint food production. This project will involve a Belarusian meat and dairy company and a Cuban enterprise that has the necessary manufacturing infrastructure. The joint venture is to use Belarusian raw materials to produce a wide range of dairy products for Cuba and potentially for other countries of the Caribbean and all of Latin America. Projects in meat processing are also under discussion,” the prime minister said.
According to him, another priority topic is manufacturing. “The necessary steps have been taken to start assemblying Belarusian tractors, trucks and buses,” Manuel Marrero Cruz noted.
Biotechnology and medicines are another important area of cooperation. “During the visit, three contracts will be signed to allow the registration and sale of Cuban pharmaceutical products in Belarus and Belarusian pharmaceutical products in Cuba,” Manuel Marrero Cruz added. He also spoke about the interaction in science and inter-bank contacts.
During the negotiations Aleksandr Lukashenko emphasized: “We need to take stock of our relations and identify promising avenues of cooperation.”
Manuel Marrero Cruz arrived in Belarus on an official visit on 9 November. He is scheduled to hold talks with Prime Minister Roman Golovchenko, leaders of both chambers of the Belarusian Parliament and members of the National Assembly's working group on cooperation with the Cuban Parliament. While on a visit to Belarus, Manuel Marrero Cruz will learn more about the capabilities of the Belarusian manufacturing sector and meat and dairy industries.
The two countries are working to increase bilateral trade. In July a Belarusian delegation headed by Minister of Foreign Affairs Sergei Aleinik paid an official visit to Cuba. During that visit the parties discussed the entire range of Belarus-Cuba relations and ways to intensify them, including through the mechanism of the bilateral commission on trade and economic cooperation. Traditionally, special attention was paid to the supply of Belarusian equipment and spare parts, popular food products and other Belarusian goods. During the meetings, the Belarus-Cuba cooperation and promising joint projects in science, biotechnology and pharmacology were discussed in great detail.
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