MINSK, 12 June (BelTA) – Cuba is a significant foreign policy partner for Belarus, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Yevgeny Shestakov told reporters following the 11th meeting of the Belarus-Cuba commission on trade and economic cooperation in Minsk on 12 June, BelTA has learned.
“A high-ranking government delegation headed by Cuban Deputy Prime Minister Ricardo Cabrisas Ruiz is visiting Minsk on 10-12 June. Our countries have a long history of friendly relations based on mutual respect, understanding and support. We share views on the world order, we strive to build a fair world order,” said Yevgeny Shestakov.
The deputy foreign minister emphasized that Cuba is an important foreign policy partner for Belarus in the international arena and one of the most important allies in the Western Hemisphere. “Belarus-Cuba cooperation agenda is very extensive. We actively exchange visits of both industry and government delegations,” he noted.
“The 11th meeting of the Belarus-Cuba commission on trade and economic cooperation has just ended. We have discussed a broad spectrum of issues of mutual interest,” the deputy foreign minister continued. “I would say that the conversation was candid and meaningful. In fact, we have a lot of plans and goals, we are determined to achieve appreciable results. We analyzed the current state of things and agreed on how to move forward,” he noted.
Belarus believes that the protocol to the intergovernmental agreement on mutual supplies will be the main driver of cooperation.
“This document sets a new bar for trade - up to $15 million for each party over 5 years. The figure seems small, but in fact it is an ambitious task, given that over the previous 10 years the trade in goods was even smaller,” Yevgeny Shestakov said.
