On August 15, President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko met with Vladimir Mazur, Governor of the Tomsk Region of the Russian Federation.
“I am sincerely glad to welcome you to the Belarusian land. One of the promising Siberian partners for us is the Tomsk region. The significant resource, industrial, tourist, intellectual potential of the region is of great interest to us,” the President said.
Last year, the volume of trade between the parties increased by 47% and amounted to almost $23 million. Positive dynamics is also observed this year: for the first half of the year, growth is still almost 30%.
“But it is absolutely obvious that this is extremely small. The turnover can and should be at least two or three times more. There are plenty of growth points,” the Head of State drew attention.
One of the traditional foundations of economic cooperation between Belarus and the Tomsk Region is the export of agricultural raw materials to the Russian region. And not only malt, Alexander Lukashenko noted (in the first half of the year Belarus exported this product to the Tomsk region for $ 2.35 million).
In 2022, deliveries of amino acids by the Belarusian National Biotechnology Corporation began. “This product, you know, is vital in animal husbandry, and taking into account various kinds of pressure on us and Western sanctions, it is very important that we move away from external dependence here,” the President said. – As I am informed, the issue of modernization of urban electric transport is also relevant for Tomsk and the region. I know that Belarusian trolleybuses are widely used in your country. We are ready to provide the entire line of required equipment, including trams, buses and electric buses.”
Mogilevliftmash can fully satisfy the Tomsk Region’s need for elevator equipment both for new buildings and for elevator replacement programs, the Head of State suggested.
In recent years, the Tomsk region has achieved significant success in the agricultural sector. At the same time, Belarus makes its own, albeit modest, contribution to this process: its tractors and combines work effectively in the fields of the Russian region.
“We believe that our experience and high-quality technologies could also be in demand by you in animal husbandry, crop production, as well as the construction of dairy and grain drying complexes. We are ready to share the technologies of cultivation and processing of flax. Your region, like the whole of Belarus, is a flagship in this regard,” the Belarusian leader noted.
More than 60% of the territory of the Tomsk region is occupied by forests, the region also has huge reserves of peat. Alexander Lukashenko stressed that this wealth should not only be used effectively, but also be able to save, especially from the fires that have become more frequent in recent years. According to the President, the Belarusian side is ready to share its best practices in the production of logging, fire and rescue equipment, peat extraction machines.
Tomsk region is one of the three leaders of the national scientific and technological rating of Russia, and the city of Tomsk is called the student capital. There are 25 cooperation agreements between educational institutions of Belarus and the Tomsk Region, and a number of joint research projects are being carried out.
“However, I think the potential for cooperation in education and science is far from being disclosed. We must use each other’s highest competencies competently and rationally,” the Head of State stressed. — A good example of such intellectual cooperation can be the implementation by your scientists, together with our Academy of Sciences and companies, of a project for the production of aerospace and special purpose transistors, which is very relevant.”
“I am convinced that together we can create the most advanced technologies, eliminating our dependence, Russia and Belarus, on the West,” Alexander Lukashenko added.
“I want to emphasize that we are absolutely open to a substantive conversation in all areas of cooperation. You can be absolutely sure: if we promise something and agree on something, Belarusians will definitely fulfill it. I assure you that our agreements will be fulfilled by 100 and even more than 100 percent,” Alexander Lukashenko assured.
