Press releases

MINSK, 27 July (BelTA) - The 5th Forum of Regions of Belarus and Russia will draw about 2,000 participants, BelTA learned from the press service of the Council of the Republic.

The main event of the forum will be a plenary session to discuss the priority areas of the development of regional cooperation as a key factor in integration and the Union State development. It is expected that the plenary session will be attended by heads of state. The forum will run panel discussions on agricultural policy, harmonization of legislation, digital economy, youth policy, international activities and economic security. The business part of the forum will include a session of the Business Cooperation Council, business meetings and business talks between heads of companies and enterprises of the two countries.

Since the forum was launched Belarusian and Russian partners have signed commercial contracts and agreements worth more than $930 million. For example, the 3rd Forum of Regions of Belarus and Russia brought $300 million in contracts while the 4th forum more than $400 million. “We hope that this year the amount of commercial contracts and agreements will not be lower than in previous years,” the press service noted.

A session of the inter-parliamentary commission of the Council of the Republic and the Federation Council on interregional cooperation will talk over prospects for strengthening inter-parliamentary relations and also the role of the parliamentary dimension in the development of Belarusian-Russian relations.

The program will also include the Week of Integration and Cooperation, a youth forum, a meeting of student teams, a Sports Day for Children and Youth, a hockey tournament, a joint meeting of the women's unions in Mogilev Oblast and Tula Oblast and many more.

The forum will comprise a fair of arts and crafts and national expositions that will feature master classes, exhibitions of arts crafts, folk games, the national cuisine, competitions and the concert “The Commonwealth of Cultures – the Commonwealth of Nations”.

The 5th Forum of Regions of Belarus and Russia will take place in Mogilev on 11-12 October. The organizers are the Council of the Republic of the National Assembly of Belarus and the Federation Council of the Federal Assembly of the Russian Federation in cooperation with the Mogilev Oblast Executive Committee.