Opinions & Interviews

MINSK, 8 December (BelTA) – European businessmen were faster than politicians to see Belarus as a stable and reliable partner, Deputy Chairman of the Belarusian Chamber of Commerce and Industry (BCCI) Vladimir Ulakhovich told journalists before the seminar “Development of economic cooperation with EU countries” on 8 December, BelTA has learned.

“European businessmen were faster than politicians to see Belarus as a reliable, stable, and sound partner. Moreover, businessmen persuade politicians to give up their conservative and artificial approaches that do not work in respect of Belarus,” Vladimir Ulakhovich noted. He believes that some changes in the attitude of European politicians can already be observed. “As far as the economic cooperation is concerned, we have been working and will continue to work on its development. Our pragmatic European partners understand that Belarus is worth working with,” he noted.

Vladimir Ulakhovich emphasized that the market of the European Union is very important for Belarus. Even though Belarus is currently facing a number of restrictions, it continues increasing its export to the European countries. While commenting on the readiness of Belarusian companies to enter the European market, Vladimir Ulakhovich noted that these companies should think of some long-term solutions as the cooperation with the European Union is one of Belarus’ main areas of economic development. “EU citizens are potential consumers of Belarusian products. Besides, the high standards of quality and rigid certification procedures required by the European Union from its partners encourage our manufacturers to improve product quality and enhance the efficiency of marketing tools,” he noted.

Vladimir Ulakhovich also said that the work on developing an integrated entrepreneurship support system and bolstering business ties for the sustainable cross-border cooperation between Belarus, Latvia, and Lithuania is currently underway. “We are planning to create an Internet information platform that will help businessmen find partners, solve problems and get up-to-date information, including about tenders in the European Union,” Vladimir Ulakhovich said.