MINSK, 28 January (BelTA) - Germany is one of the key partners of Belarus in the European Union and the world, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Belarus to Germany Denis Sidorenko said in his article “Belarus: at the Crossroads Between East and West” in the German Business & Diplomacy magazine, BelTA has learned.
The Ambassador stressed that the relations with Germany occupy a special place in the foreign policy of the Republic of Belarus. “Through joint efforts, dialogue and cooperation we have managed to largely overcome the dark, tragic page in the history of bilateral relations, to take important steps towards each other in terms of reconciliation of the two peoples,” the diplomat said.
The ambassador described the visit of German President Frank-Walter Steinmeier to Belarus in June 2018 as symbolic and historic. Together with Presidents Alexander Lukashenko of Belarus and Alexander van der Bellen of Austria he attended a ceremony to open the second stage of the Trostenets Memorial. It was the largest death camp in the territory of the Soviet Union where more than 200,000 people were killed during the Second World War.
Germany continues to provide assistance to Belarus in mitigating the Chernobyl impact, including by hosting thousands of Belarusian children for recuperation every year.
Germany is one of major trading and economic and investment partners of Belarus. In recent years, the merchandise trade between the countries has increased substantially. In 2017, it rose by a quarter. In 2018 it may exceed the mark of $3 billion.
