Opinions & Interviews

MINSK, 17 September (BelTA) – Belarus expects more active trade and economic cooperation with the USA after the first Belarusian-American investment forum that will take place in New York on 22 September, BelTA learned from Belarusian Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Guryanov on 17 September.

According to the Deputy Foreign Minister, plans have been made to arrange a number of economy-focused events abroad this year, including investment forums in New York and London in the form of compact forums.

Since Prime Minister of Belarus Mikhail Myasnikovich will be in New York for the sake of taking part in UN events, the Prime Minister will also take part in the investment forum in order to deliver first-hand information about opportunities for developing investment and economic cooperation with Belarus to potential investors among American companies and international corporations. “We hope that the invigoration of bilateral trade and economic relations that have already been developing quite well recently will be the key result of the event,” remarked Alexander Guryanov.

The Belarusian Deputy Foreign Minister mentioned that at present the USA is one of the leading investors in Belarus, with over 380 joint ventures and foreign-owned companies with a share of American capital established. “Our annual bilateral trade in merchandise and services exceeds $1 billion. On the whole, the dynamics is positive despite political considerations, which are discussed in parallel by the agencies in charge of foreign affairs and the administrations,” he stated.

Alexander Guryanov also said he hopes that the investment forum in New York will allow establishing a more active dialogue between representatives of the business communities of the two countries. “We don’t expect we will be able to discuss ready grand projects and sign huge contracts. It will be a serious preparatory event, which, as we have agreed, will contribute to the new level of economic interaction between the two countries despite some contradictions that exist in another agenda,” noted the Belarusian Deputy Foreign Minister.

Natalia Nikandrova, Director of the National Agency of Investment and Privatization of Belarus, said that the event will be arranged as a discussion panel. Anyone present will be able to ask questions to representatives of government agencies that will participate in the forum.

The forum will be divided into three blocks. The first one will be dedicated to discussing Belarus’ investment climate, national investment projects, and opportunities for cooperation in priority areas. The second block will focus on IT industry and science, while the third one will highlight trade and economic affairs, advantages of cooperation with Belarus in view of the Single Economic Space and the Eurasian Economic Union. The operation of the Belarusian-American business cooperation council will also be discussed.

According to Natalia Nikandrova, about 170 American companies operating in various spheres have registered to participate in the forum. Representatives of American scientific circles, non-for-profit institutions and consulting companies have been invited to participate.

The Director of the National Agency of Investment and Privatization of Belarus also said that they had signed a contract with a respectable media outlet for preparing monthly bulletins on investment opportunities in Belarus. These materials will be distributed during investment economic forums and about 200 various events to be held throughout the globe. “Our key goal is to tell the international community that Belarus is open to foreign investments and the conditions we offer are competitive and interesting,” stressed Natalia Nikandrova.