MUSCAT, 18 December (BelTA) - Representatives of the governments of Belarus and Oman signed documents on cooperation and outlined roadmaps by sectors during the visit of Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko to Muscat, BelTA learned.
A memorandum of understanding in the field of industrial cooperation was signed between the Belarusian Industry Ministry and the Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Investment Promotion of the Sultanate of Oman. The parties also sealed a memorandum of understanding between the Omani Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Investment Promotion and the State Committee for Standardization of Belarus in the field of standardization, metrology, conformity assessment and accreditation.
“We worked out these documents just before we left for Oman and put the final touches just last night. The fact that we worked on the formulations until the eleventh hour attests to the interest of both sides,” Belarusian Minister of Foreign Affairs Maksim Ryzhenkov told the media. “These are the first bricks in the architecture of our cooperation in these areas. In the future they should be supplemented with concrete projects to realize the ideas we agreed on during this visit.
In addition, during the president's visit, there were a lot of consultations and negotiations at the ministerial level (the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Industry Ministry and the Ministry of Agriculture and Food) outside of the summit meetings. “Together with our partners, we worked out specific mechanisms for building up cooperation. If we are talking about the Ministers of Agriculture and Food and Industry, specific projects have already been outlined. Roadmaps to these projects have been agreed upon. This applies to the packaging of our dried baby food in Oman and its further sale on the local market and abroad. This also applies to milk powder, some cereals. There is interest in veterinary drugs,” Maksim Ryzhenkov said.
The parties also discussed the possibility of supplying meat products, as Belarusian producers have halal certificates, which allows them to work on the Omani market.
“These are no longer just talks but concrete agreements, for which we have signed individual roadmaps. They define the steps to implement these projects,” the foreign minister stressed.
He noted that in accordance with these roadmaps the parties will exchange business trips to build up long-term reliable relations.
In addition, the parties agreed on the text of a joint statement on behalf of the heads of state. The document outlines all the key areas of cooperation. “This joint communiqué reflects the essence of many agreements that were concluded during this visit,” the minister said.
In general, he assesses the outcome of the visit as very positive and forward-looking. “The question now is about implementation. As our president always says, it is not enough to agree, or sign some documents. I am very pleased that the signing of the agreements is already followed by concrete arrangements on visits by our companies to Oman and Omani companies to Belarus. They show interest in our healthcare system, medicines, veterinary drugs, dairy products and foodstuffs. The delegation from the Agriculture and Food Ministry has done a very good job here,” Maksim Ryzhenkov emphasized.
He noted that Oman is important for Belarus in terms of creating a hub for products not only for the needs of the local market but also with an eye on other countries in the region, given the wide contacts and thousands of years of experience of Omanis in the markets of Africa, India and other countries.
“So we are counting on their assistance. Oman also sees its interest in this. They have examined the range of commodities we produce and seen things that may have their uses in their market and also in East Africa, at the enterprises in which they have now invested outside the country,” the minister said.
