Opinions & Interviews

MINSK, 14 September (BelTA) - Belarus is ready to launch the construction of the south transport corridor in late 2018, given the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development supports the project, Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko said as he met with EBRD President Suma Chakrabarti on 14 September, BelTA has learned.

“Next year we will be ready to complete the Grodno highway which we are building with your help. If everything goes well, we would be able to redeploy our capacities for the construction of the south corridor which bears high importance for Europe today. We are ready to provide services that will be cheaper than those of any European or Asian company,” stressed Alexander Lukashenko.

The president noted that the Belarusian infrastructure serves the country and also the whole continent. “It so happened that Belarus has become the most attractive, stable and secure territory for Europeans and Asians. People, goods, cargo, services move across the territory of Belarus. “These are hundreds of millions of tonnes of cargo alone. We have good infrastructure and for the time being it has been handling these flows well. But we must think of raising its level to the highest European standards,” he said.

Alexander Lukashenko recalled that the EBRD has already invested in the development of the road network in Belarus, and the state is grateful to the Bank for this. But this is not sufficient, the president believes. Talks are underway to build a wider highway in southern Belarus “to intercept the southern flow from China, Central Asia, Russia and redirect it through the southern part, through Gomel to Brest and on to Europe. We are ready to provide this service. I am saying this for the Europeans to understand that by providing some support to us, you do us good, of course. But it is a two-way process. It benefits Europe too. We would like you to take all this into consideration as we engage in talks on various projects,” the president said.