MINSK, 29 July (BelTA) – Belarusian foodstuffs worth $600 million will be shipped to China in the coming four years, First Deputy Premier Aleksandr Turchin said during the ceremony to sign an agreement to promote trade, economic and investment cooperation with China's Greenland Holdings Corporation Limited on 29 July, BelTA has learned.
“The agreement on strategic cooperation between Greenland and Meat and Dairy Company provides for the supply of Belarusian food products worth $600 million to China in the coming four years. In order to facilitate the sale of Belarusian products on the Chinese market, Belarus is going to set up a national pavilion in the expo complex of the corporation in Shanghai and to open a restaurant of Belarusian cuisine,” Aleksandr Turchin said.
He noted that Belarus-China relations have advanced to the level of trustful partnership based on the guaranties of the two heads of state. “The government of Belarus has paid much attention to trade, economic and investment ties with China. Bilateral trade in goods and services reached $4.4 billion in 2018. The export of agricultural products and foodstuffs rose 4.5 times to reach $82.5 million. As the export grew, more container trains were used to transport cargo from Belarus to China along the Silk Road economic belt. The number of such trains quadrupled in 2018. This trend remains in place throughout this year. In January-May the export of Belarusian goods to China rose two times,” Aleksandr Turchin noted.
According to him, it is important to scale up investment cooperation in tourism. Belarus welcomes Greenland's project to build the Shanghai Hotel in Minsk. Belarus is interested in launching direct flights between Minsk and Shanghai. “The Year of Belarusian Tourism in China in 2018 resulted in the intergovernmental agreement on mutual visa-free travels, which helped Belarus increase the export of its tourism services,” he said.
Chairman and President of Greenland Group Zhang Yuliang noted that China is the world's largest outbound travel market. Belarus' tourism market offers a lot of promise. “I am convinced that your country will draw many Chinese travelers. We have many common ideas, therefore our cooperation will be promising,” he said.
Top on the agenda of the meeting was also development of the China-Belarus Industrial Park Great Stone. “This will be an open international cluster focused on international markets. The Belarusian government is interested in your investments in the park and hopes that your company will open operations here,” Aleksandr Turchin said.
The agreements reached on the margins of the meeting on 29 July will be actively implemented at the 2nd China International Import Expo to be held in Shanghai in November. “I am sure that this will be the next step in cooperation with your corporation. I hope you have come to our country for a long time, and I am ready to assure you that the Belarusian government will provide your corporation with the necessary assistance,” said Aleksandr Turchin.
