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22 January 2020, 13:11

Negotiations on EAEU-Israel FTA tentatively scheduled for March

MINSK, 22 January (BelTA) – Chairman of the House of Representatives of the National Assembly of Belarus Vladimir Andreichenko met with Speaker of the Knesset (the Israeli parliament) Yuli-Yoel Edelstein on 21 January, the first day of Vladimir Andreichenko's visit to Israel, the press service of the lower chamber of the Belarusian parliament told BelTA.

Vladimir Andreichenko will stay in Israel through 24 January. He is in Jerusalem upon instructions of the head of state to participate in an international forum of leaders dedicated to the International Holocaust Remembrance Day and the 75th anniversary of the liberation of Auschwitz.

Speaking about the importance of these events, Vladimir Andreichenko said that the Belarusian parliament honors memory of the Jews, who fought against the Nazism. The number includes two members of the first-convocation Supreme Council of the Belarusian Soviet Socialist Republic (BSSR) Boris Khononovich Perochinsky and Foma Iosifovich Lasko. Their names are engraved on memorial plaques placed in the lobby of the Oval Chamber of the House of Representatives of the National Assembly of Belarus. Vladimir Andreichenko added that copies of documents about the outstanding Jews will be handed over to the world holocaust remembrance center Yad Vashem.

Vladimir Andreichenko and Yuli-Yoel Edelstein also discussed prospects of implementing the verbal agreement on setting up a free trade zone between Israel and the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU). The establishment of such a free trade zone meets interests of the two nations and will allow more effectively achieving goals meant to ensure economic wellbeing and social security. According to Vladimir Andreichenko, Belarus' presidency in the Eurasian Economic Union in 2020 represents a window of opportunity in this regard. The MP explained that the sixth round of negotiations on signing an EAEU-Israel free trade agreement is supposed to take place in Moscow in March 2020.

During the meeting the need for tighter interaction in international organizations was stressed, in particular, in the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly. Efforts to counteract any attempts to revise results of the war and distort historic truth should be an important part of this work.

Vladimir Andreichenko and Yuli-Yoel Edelstein reviewed prospects of advancing bilateral cooperation between the parliaments. Vladimir Andreichenko mentioned the productive nature of interaction between the friendship groups in the two parliaments. The composition of the Belarusian parliament's working group for bilateral cooperation is being refreshed now. Vladimir Andreichenko said he hopes that after parliamentary elections in Israel in March 2020, the new parliament will also set up a league of Israel-Belarus interparliamentary friendship.

Vladimir Andreichenko said: “We should actively explore the potential of parliamentary diplomacy for bolstering trade, economic, and investment cooperation.” He suggested getting MPs involved in the work of the Belarus-Israel committee on trade and economic cooperation.

Speaking about the importance of regional ties, Vladimir Andreichenko referred to the positive experience of the development of twinning relations between Belarusian and Israeli cities as an example. Eight pairs of towns and cities have been twinned. Vladimir Andreichenko underlined the importance of implementing projects to preserve historical places relating to the joint residence of Belarusian and Jewish nations in Belarus. For instance, the life of the founder of modern Hebrew Eliezer Ben-Yehuda was influenced by Vitebsk Oblast.

Vladimir Andreichenko and Yuli-Yoel Edelstein also discussed prospects of cooperation in science, innovations, healthcare, agriculture, and tourism.

After the meeting the speaker of the lower chamber of the Belarusian parliament signed the distinguished visitors' book of the Israeli parliament. He wrote: “The bilateral interparliamentary ties rely on centuries of history of mutual relations between our friendly nations in the Belarusian land, which acted as a cradle of three presidents and three prime ministers of the State of Israel, prominent Jewish thinkers, religious figures, and the founder of modern Hebrew. The hall of Marc Chagall, a former resident of Belarusian Vitebsk, is a symbol of the Knesset and represents another reminder about the common history.”

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