BREST, 21 November (BelTA) – In January-September 2018, Brest Oblast's export to Poland rose 1.5 times over the same period in 2017, Brest Oblast Governor Anatoly Lis said as he met with Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Poland to Belarus Artur Michalski on 21 November, BelTA has learned.
“Over the nine months, the trade between Brest Oblast and Poland exceeded $260 million. There is still room for improvement, although the export expanded 50% over the same period last year, which is quite impressive. Our manufacturers are ready to ramp up export supplies to the Polish market and deliver traditional and new export commodities,” Anatoly Lis emphasized. In January-September Brest Oblast companies shipped products worth $93.8 million to Poland. Those were mostly furniture, particle boards, coal, lead, crushed stone, firewood, timber, rapeseed oil, monofilament thread and toys.
According to Artur Michalski, Poland would like to ramp up cooperation with Belarusian regions in various sectors. “We need to take advantage of our neighborhood. First of all, we should focus on economic dimension. We see good progress here. The Poland-Belarus commission for economic cooperation will sit in Warsaw the coming Monday. This will offer a good opportunity to explore other cooperation avenues,” the ambassador said.
The parties also discussed ways of promoting closer ties in education, culture, and sport. Special consideration was given to cooperation in tourism. The governor noted that in 2018 Brest and surrounding areas became part of the visa-free program. Many Polish citizens take advantage of this opportunity and visit the Belarusian region. They make up 70% of the total number of visa-free tourists to Brest Oblast.
“We need to talk over a lot of issues in tourism. This is a promising area for cooperation. Interaction should be mutual,” Anatoly Lis said. He added that Brest Oblast is interested in attracting tourists living not only in the frontier areas but also in other regions of Poland.
“I think the interest will only grow. Many in Poland are not yet aware of the possibility to visit Belarus without a visa. For example, the Brest millennium is approaching. The history has evolved in such a way that we have a lot of shared heritage, and it is interesting to learn more about it,” the diplomat said.
