Lukashenko: Belarus's cooperation potential with Tatarstan is colossal

The potential for cooperation between Belarus and Tatarstan is enormous. This was stated by the President of Belarus, Alexander Lukashenko, at a meeting with the head of Tatarstan, Rustam Minnikhanov, as reported by a BELTA correspondent.

"I am sincerely, from the bottom of my heart, glad to welcome you to Belarus, to Minsk. You are true friends of the Belarusian people. I have been observing the development of your region with great interest for a long time. The successes are impressive and inspire us to work even more actively with Kazan," Alexander Lukashenko emphasized. "Furthermore, we have established very business-like, productive relations, and the potential of our ties is enormous."

The head of state admitted that he was always amazed by how similar the land of Tatarstan was to Belarus. "If I didn't know you were flying over Tatarstan, I would think it was exactly like the nature of our Belarus," he said.

Recently, a Belarusian delegation led by Prime Minister Roman Golovchenko visited Tatarstan. The parties identified specific areas of cooperation.

Approximately 50% of the trade turnover between Minsk and Kazan is currently provided by the petrochemical industry. "Therefore, a growth in trade volumes by more than 5% in 2022, reaching a billion dollars, is a good indicator. But it does not fully reflect our capabilities," the President said. "Our petrochemical industry is just one area. Therefore, you did the right thing by not limiting yourselves to petrochemicals when developing the cooperation plan."

Alexander Lukashenko stressed that the parties must expand the range of mutual supplies, enhance cooperation, and create joint ventures at all costs. "If you have any interests, we will definitely work in this direction," the President assured. "The sphere of information technologies and the digital economy opens up great opportunities. You know our capabilities. If we cooperate here together with you, then we will also achieve a good long-term effect."

The Head of State also noted the high level of humanitarian cooperation between Belarus and Tatarstan. According to him, the high level of interest from the residents of Tatarstan in the events within the framework of the Days of Belarusian Culture in 2022 confirms the importance of cultural exchanges, the preservation of the traditions of our peoples, and, of course, common historical memory. "We will gladly host the reciprocal Days of Culture of your republic in our country," Alexander Lukashenko stated.

The President also thanked the Head of Tatarstan for the warm welcome and support of the Belarusian team in Kazan at the international "Friendship Games" last year. "We will not be in debt," he emphasized.

The Head of State concluded that the list of areas in which the parties can cooperate has no limits. Alexander Lukashenko is confident that the current visit of the Tatarstan delegation will be very productive and will significantly exceed today's trade figures. "Moreover, our opportunities are colossal," the Belarusian leader summarized.

Source: belta.by