MINSK, 24 June (BelTA) - Belarusian Deputy Prime Minister Igor Petrishenko commented on the exclusion of Belarus and Russia from the Bologna Process as he addressed a joint meeting of the House of Representatives and the Council of the Republic on 24 June, BelTA has learned.
"Many Western universities have suspended partnerships with our universities in education and research. Recently, Europe made ‘loud' statements about the exclusion of Belarus and Russia from the Bologna Process. I don't think we need to make such a big issue out of this. I would like to note that we initially took a very cautious and balanced approach to the participation in this organization and prioritized the national interests," Igor Petrishenko said.
According to him, integration into the international educational space will continue. "We will study and adopt the best practices and shift our focus to cooperation with the education systems of friendly countries," the deputy prime minister said.
Igor Petrishenko drew attention to the continued growth of interest in Belarusian education abroad. “This year, we have about 30,000 foreign students in Belarus. Last year there were 26,000 of them and five years ago - about 20,000,” he noted.
