Lukashenko off to Iran on official visit

MINSK, 12 March (BelTA) – Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko has left for Iran on an official visit. The Belarusian air force one took off Minsk National Airport, BelTA has learned.

The visit of the Belarusian president is taking place as the countries are getting ready to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations (18 March).

In Tehran, the Belarusian head of state is set to hold talks with Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi. During a meeting on the sidelines of the SCO summit in Samarkand on 16 September 2022, the leaders of the two countries instructed the foreign ministries to take stock of the relations and take measures to intensify them.

“The talks in Tehran will focus on the development of cooperation across the entire spectrum of bilateral relations with an emphasis on trade and economy. The meeting of the presidents will be held in the one-on-one and expanded formats with the participation of members of delegations. The parties will discuss the projects in industry, agriculture, transport and logistics. Particular consideration will be given to the situation in the region and in the world as a whole,” the president's press service informed.

In Iran, Aleksandr Lukashenko is scheduled to meet with First Vice President Mohammad Mokhber, Chairman of the Islamic Consultative Assembly Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf and Supreme Leader of Iran Ali Khamenei.

Belarus stands ready to strengthen not only a full-fledged political dialogue with Iran but also to develop trade and economic ties and joint investment projects, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Belarus to Iran Dmitry Koltsov said in an interview with BelTA. He called economic cooperation the key area of interaction.

"In the difficult geopolitical situation, Belarus and Iran managed to achieve certain successes in the development of bilateral trade and investment cooperation. This is confirmed by the statistical data. In 2022, the trade between our countries more than tripled," the Belarusian diplomat said.