Opinions & Interviews

MINSK, 15 March (BelTA) - Belarus is interested in investment gods from Germany, Chairman of the Council of the Republic Mikhail Myasnikovich said as he met with Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Germany to Belarus Peter Dettmar, BelTA has learned.

Germany is one of the leading trading partners of Belarus. In 2015 the trade amounted to $2.47 billion ($1.09 billion in exports, $1.39 billion in imports). The imports were mainly investment goods. Germany is the number one supplier of high-tech equipment for Belarus, including for modernization of the production capacities. “Last year the scale of economic cooperation dropped but I would like to emphasize that we are interested in investment import from Germany, and its volumes should be restored,” the Speaker said.

According to him, Belarus has 361 enterprises with the German participation and about 90 missions of German firms. “This process must be strengthened. If you look at the authorized funds of the companies involving German capital, they account for $143 million. This is not so much,” Mikhail Myasnikovich said.

The two countries also need to intensify political contacts, the chairman of the upper chamber of Belarusian parliament believes. This applies to the inter-parliamentary cooperation as well. The National Assembly of Belarus of the fifth convocation set up a working group on cooperation with the Parliament of Germany headed by Senator Svetlana Gerasimovich. The German Bundestag has a parliamentary group for relations with the Belarusian Parliament. It is led by member of the Social Democratic Party of Germany Oliver Kaczmarek.

Among the topical areas of interaction is culture. Within the framework of scientific and technological cooperation the two countries are implementing over 50 joint projects, most of them with German financial support. Belarusian universities maintain relations with more than 30 universities in Germany.

Germany has traditionally been a leader among the countries that provide assistance to Belarus in overcoming the impact of the Chernobyl accident. Germany accounts for up to 20% of total foreign gratuitous aid every year, and hosts over 3,500 Belarusian children on recuperation trips. Germany has developed a network of Chernobyl-related initiatives which includes over 400 organizations.