Projects
Government Bodies
Flag Tuesday, 19 March 2024
All news
All news
Politics
15 July 2019, 11:48

Ambassador: Belarus-Venezuela cooperation continues, although slows down due to sanctions

MINSK, 15 July (BelTA) - Belarus and Venezuela continue to cooperate although the pace of cooperation has slowed down in connection with the difficult domestic political situation in Venezuela and the subsequent sanctions, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Belarus to Venezuela Oleg Paferov told the media as he attended the annual seminar of the heads of diplomatic missions and consular institutions in Minsk, BelTA has learned.

According to the ambassador, the implementation of many projects in Venezuela has been temporarily suspended. This applies, for example, to the joint venture to assemble trucks and tractors. “They assemble just a few pieces a day not to stop the production completely,” Oleg Paferov said.

The joint housing construction project continues, but, unfortunately, at a slower pace. The same happened to the projects in oil production – the volume of production decreased from 3 million barrels per day to 500,000, the diplomat informed.

At the same time Venezuelanhas proposed to step up cooperation in agriculture. It suggested giving Belarus a plot of land for the development of an agro-town with the possibility of growing farm products and selling them independently, which is very important for people in Venezuela. The authorities are even ready to abandon the quota: 20% of Belarusian specialists and 80% - Venezuelan specialists.

According to the head of the diplomatic mission, the cooperation will pick up once the political situation in Venezuela stabilizes and economic sanctions are lifted. “This would allow investing there. Without investments, especially in the oil sector, it is impossible to ramp up production,” he said. “Essentially, the economic war is waging. Our cooperation has been somewhat affected by the political situation and, as a consequence, economic sanctions,” the diplomat added.

Oleg Paferov recalled that Belarus had always supported the legitimate authorities in Venezuela in the person of President Nicolas Maduro and opposed outside interference in the internal affairs of the state. According to him, the majority of Venezuelans also supports the president, and the attempts by the opposition to seize power have failed. Yet the situation in the country remains difficult, particularly with regard to the standard of living of people. It is therefore necessary to continue the negotiating process with a view to the lifting of the economic sanctions against Venezuela as quickly as possible.

Subscribe to us
Twitter
Recent news from Belarus