BELARUS-ARMENIA INTERPARLIAMENTARY COMMISSION TO MEET IN MINSK

Trend News Agency
Feb 5 2009
Azerbaijan

The Belarusian-Armenian interparliamentary cooperation commission plans
to hold a session in Minsk on February 23-24, Chairman of the House
of Representatives of the National Assembly Vladimir Andreichenko
said as he met with Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of
the Republic of Armenia to Belarus Oleg Esayan, reported Belta .

The Belarusian part of the cooperation commission has already been
set up. According to Vladimir Andreichenko, the forthcoming session
will help establish closer contacts between the National Assemblies
of Armenia and Belarus. The agenda of the session includes goals to
enhance energy security. Armenia has a rich experience in the field,
the Belarusian speaker said.

Vladimir Andreichenko stressed that the Belarusian and Armenian
parliamentarians have been closely cooperating including within the
international organisations. The recent years have seen the cooperation
between the two countries considerably intensified. With setting up
the bilateral commission, the parliaments of Armenia and Belarus have
reached higher level of cooperation, Vladimir Andreichenko added.

"Although we have no common borders, Belarus and Armenia have
established warm friendly relations. The mutual trade has been
increasing year-on-year," Chairman of the House of Representatives
said. At the same time, according to him, the potential in the trade
and economic relations of the two countries remains untapped.

Vladimir Andreichenko invited an official delegation of Armenia and
its Speaker to visit Belarus this year.

On his part, Oleg Esayan said that Belarusian-Armenian relations
have been successfully developing almost in all areas: politics,
economy, culture. The two countries have similar positions on all most
important issues of international politics. Yet there is a need to
put more efforts in creation of joint companies, investment projects,
interbank cooperation. Oleg Esayan is confident that "2009 can be
most important for starting a new series of high-level visits."

According to the Ambassador of Armenia, bilateral trade has increased
significantly over the past several years. Last year, trade between
Belarus and Armenia reached $28.2 million, up 18.9 over 2007.

An increase in Belarusian exports to Armenia came on the back of
large contracts for the delivery of Belarusian goods for the mining
industry. Belarus’ major exports to Armenia were tyres, trucks,
medicines, tractors, special-purpose vehicles. All in all Belarus
exports more than 140 types of products to Armenia.

Oleg Esayan conveyed an invitation to Vladimir Andreichenko from
the Speaker of the Armenian parliament to pay an official visit to
Armenia this year.