MINSK, 6 April (BelTA) – Relations between Belarus and Switzerland have always been pragmatic and constructive, Chairman of the House of Representatives of the National Assembly of Belarus Vladimir Andreichenko said as he met with Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Switzerland to Belarus Christine Honegger Zolotukhin, BelTA has learned.
“In my opinion, relations between our countries have always been pragmatic and constructive regardless of the political situation. It has been particularly noticeable in recent years when our inter-parliamentary, trade, economic, and cultural cooperation made a lot of progress. I cherish memories of my visit to your beautiful country in February 2018. Back then we held a number of productive meetings with high-ranking and highest-ranking officials of your country. A number of agreements were reached. And most importantly, these agreements were successfully implemented. Our trade and economic cooperation remained on the growth track, our trade exceeded $300 million. We also promoted cooperation in culture and sports. There were even two hockey matches - one in Minsk with the participation of the president of our country, and the other one in Switzerland. And, of course, a number of Swiss companies launched operations in Belarus. In other words, our cooperation stood on a solid ground,” Vladimir Andreichenko said.
The speaker noted that unfortunately, the bilateral cooperation slowed down recently. “I think that Belarus is not to blame here. And I do not want to blame one side or the other today. I personally believe that this is the result of the policy of the United States that is actively promoting its interests in Europe to the detriment of the interests of other states and disregarding any international obligations. Yet, I think that time will put everything in its place. As you will work in the Republic of Belarus, you need to keep in mind one thing: Belarus has always been and remains committed to peace, stability and security. We want the Russian-Ukrainian conflict to be resolved as quickly as possible. And, of course, we are ready to cooperate with your country in all areas. I would like to wish you successful work in the Republic of Belarus. I also wish that we can promptly find new points of contact and enter into some productive relations. And in general, I want the bilateral relations to be vibrant, and I want our joint work to contribute to peace and stability in Europe,” Vladimir Andreichenko said.
“I remember your visit to Switzerland very well. We were very pleased to see our relations developing so vibrantly and dynamically. I am personally very glad that we were able to open an embassy,” the ambassador added. This year we mark the 30th anniversary of diplomatic relations. This suggests that we view your country as important and that we need to maintain relations with you,” the ambassador said.
