Opinions & Interviews

According to Vladimir Makei, the current visit of the Belarusian head of state to Georgia can already be counted as success particularly taking into account about 30 various bilateral documents, which were signed as a result of the business forum in Tbilisi and negotiations between representatives of the private sector. “It lays a good foundation for future interaction,” said Vladimir Makei.

The Belarusian minister of foreign affairs stated that contacts between Belarus and Georgia have been getting more vigorous at all levels for the last few years. The fact indicates that the two countries are now on track for persistently and vigorously advancing their relations across the board — from agriculture to education and culture. “I am convinced that in the future we will be able to surpass the $200 million threshold set by the heads of state. We fully understand the need to further invigorate the relations, including in the international scene,” said the minister of foreign affairs.

Speaking about the agreement on visa-free travels for Belarusian and Georgian citizens, which had been signed as a result of the talks, Vladimir Makei explained that the document laid the legal foundation for consequent work. He reminded that Georgia had previously withdrawn from the CIS. It is one of the reasons why the legal base in the bilateral format needs to be updated.

The Belarusian minister of foreign affairs also talked about the meeting with his Georgian counterpart Mikheil Janelidze in Tbilisi. The sides discussed a broad spectrum of matters starting with bilateral relations and ending with prospects of cooperation in international organizations. “We are grateful to the Georgian side for backing Belarus on a number of matters within the framework of our interaction in various international organizations. We do the same,” said Vladimir Makei.

The need to step up the dialogue about security in Caucasia and the European region as a whole was also mentioned. “It is necessary to understand that today we are facing a number of new challenges and threats, to which we have no adequate answers for now,” stressed Vladimir Makei.

Vladimir Makei also spoke about Belarus’ and Georgia’s efforts to resolve the logistics problems impeding the development of trade relations. “The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is involved in it just like it is involved in all the other matters. It is directly related to the promotion of our export. Logistics is a very significant component. There are problems with certain countries setting excessive tariffs on our freight in transit. This is why we have agreed that we will work together with these countries to find a mutually acceptable way out of the situation in order to reduce the tariffs and thus reduce the prime cost of our products,” said the Belarusian minister of foreign affairs.