Events

MINSK, 10 October (BelTA) – Belarus’ Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Andrei Dapkiunas and the Head of the European Union Delegation Andrea Wiktorin discussed the priorities of Belarus and the EU during the UN General Assembly session, including the efforts to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals and the EU-drafted resolution on the moratorium on the use of death penalty, BelTA learned from the press service of the Belarusian Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

The sides exchanged views on the basic approaches and priorities of Belarus and the European Union at the 73rd session of the UN General Assembly. Among the priorities Andrea Wiktorin identified the EU resolution on the moratorium on the use of death penalty. The previous resolution was adopted by the UN two years ago. The document was then supported by the large majority of the states. 40 countries, including the United States, India, China and Japan voted against it. Belarus abstained in the voting. Andrei Dapkiunas highlighted the importance of discussion and development of the UN General Assembly documents on death penalty issues in an atmosphere of consistency and sincere respect for the opinion of the opposite side,” the ministry said.

The deputy minister drew the attention of the head of the EU Delegation to Belarus to a technical project aimed at supporting Belarus’ efforts in the nationalization and localization of the Sustainable Development Goals. Belarus is working on it in cooperation with the UN bodies. The diplomat suggested considering the possibility of the EU support for the project as an important tool contributing to the achievement of the SDGs in Belarus.

Andrei Dapkiunas also named the promotion of the idea to support middle-income countries in the United Nations as a priority for Belarus. On the initiative of Belarus, a high-level meeting on the matter will be held at the UN headquarters in New York on 4 December. It is expected that the meeting will launch the practical development of a strategy for UN cooperation with middle-income countries.

The parties also touched upon the joint comprehensive plan of action on Iran’s nuclear program. Andrea Wiktorin briefed Andrei Dapkiunas on the recent talks on the matter in New York in September and also about the initiative to set up a special purpose company to facilitate payments related to Iran’s export and import transactions. Andrei Dapkiunas expressed interest in continuing the exchange of information.