MOSCOW, 10 October (BelTA) – The House of Representative of the Belarus parliament has ratified the protocol on amendments to the intergovernmental agreement between Belarus and Russia on measures regulating trade and economic cooperation in the export of oil and oil products signed on 12 January 2007, BelTA has learned.
The protocol provides for a clear mechanism governing the export of oil and oil products, Aleksei Sokol, deputy chairman of the Standing Commission on Economic Policy of the House of Representatives, told reporters.
He called the protection of the domestic market and domestic enterprises as another important point. Thus, the document provides for the list of goods for which indicative balances are compiled. These are gasolines, diesel fuel, fuel oil, and petrochemical products. According to the document, before 1 October each year the parties agree on balance sheets for the next calendar year with the indication of the type and quantity of goods intended for deliveries from Russia to meet the internal needs of Belarus. “This creates certain stability and, most importantly, gives an opportunity to our refineries to operate at full capacity,” the MP stressed
Implementation of the protocol will be an additional step to settle issues in bilateral relations in what concerns the export of oil and oil products, to deepen mutually beneficial cooperation in this sector, the MP added.
As BelTA has reported, on 27 March, the protocol was ratified by the upper house of the Russian parliament, the Federation Council. The State Duma of Russia ratified the document on 20 March. The protocol was signed in Moscow on 10 October 2018. The document clarifies the procedure for coordinating the indicative balances for oil and oil products, the procedure for changing balances, as well as other issues of cooperation in the field of oil and oil products.
For goods that are not listed, the procedure for their export shall be carried out without drawing up indicative balances.
