Azerbaijan, Belarus eye further trade, investment cooperation PHOTO

Senior Azerbaijani and Belarusian officials have discussed prospects for trade and investment cooperation between the two countries.

The discussion took place between Azerbaijani Prime Minister Ali Asadov and his Belarus counterpart Roman Golovchenko as part of the latter's official visit to Azerbaijan on May 18, Report informs.

During the meeting, Golovchenko outlined directions for developing cooperation with Azerbaijan.

The Belarusian government delegation's visit to Azerbaijan is aimed at synchronizing clocks and discussing how the agreements reached by the heads of state are being implemented.

"We have brought a serious package of proposals that we would like to submit for consideration to establish cooperation guidelines as soon as possible,” BelTA reports, quoting Golovchenko.

The prime minister stated that despite the world's turbulent processes, Belarus and Azerbaijan's long-term partnership and friendly relations create a favourable environment for the development of cooperation.

"In the past year, which was not easy for the world economy to go through, we were able to reach a good bar: the trade turnover reached $885.5 million. Moreover, there is practically parity in trade, which is good for the balance of payments of both countries. This year there is slight subsidence, but last year was a record year for bilateral trade. I think that our meeting will help determine the potential for developing trade and investment cooperation and those problematic issues that need to be resolved at the government level for business entities to implement joint projects," he said.

It was also noted that an early meeting of the Belarusian-Azerbaijani commission could give an additional impetus to trade and economic cooperation.

In addition to direct trade, it is essential to implement cooperation projects in the industrial sector, as they bring added value to both economies, Golovchenko said.

He cited Belarusian machine builders' cooperation with the Ganja Automobile Plant as an example of an effective interaction model. Over the years of joint work, this enterprise has produced more than 12,000 tractors and over 4,000 other pieces of equipment.

"We consider it appropriate to move towards the creation of a machine-building cluster based on this enterprise, with the participation of Belarusian manufacturers of other equipment, such as grain and forage harvesters. At the same site, trailer units for agricultural machinery and electric buses could be produced on the same site," the prime minister proposed.

He also focused on the global food problem.

"Of course, it is necessary to pay special attention to this topic and ensure the food security of Belarus and Azerbaijan. We are interested both in the development of our deliveries to Azerbaijan (dairy, meat products) and in the deliveries of Azerbaijani fruits and vegetables to Belarus," Golovchenko added.

Belarusian enterprises these days present their products at the international exhibitions Caspian Agro and Inter Food in Baku, BelTA reported.

For his part, Asadov expressed hope for a lack of additional restrictions due to the COVID-19 pandemic and more opportunities for face-to-face meetings.

Azerbaijan's prime minister described bilateral relations as warm and friendly and expressed optimism about their future development.

In 2021, the Belarus-Azerbaijan trade amounted to $885.5 million and increased by 1.9 times compared to 2020. Exports amounted to $478 million (an increase of 2.5 times). The balance is positive. The main items of Belarusian exports to Azerbaijan last year were non-self-propelled, motor railway or tram cars, tractors, fibreboards, butter, medicines, furniture, turbojet and turboprop engines, gas turbines, timber, beef, and other products. Azerbaijan imported tomatoes, strong alcoholic drinks, cooked or canned fruits and nuts, fresh fruits, fruit and vegetable juices, meat, and edible offal of poultry, potatoes, clays, and other goods from Azerbaijan in 2021.

In 2021, the volume of foreign trade in services amounted to $23 million (118.7 per cent compared to 2020). Export of Belarusian services made up $17.1 million (112.4 per cent).

Azerbaijan has created five own commodity distribution network entities and 45 dealers representing more than 50 Belarusian enterprises. Based on the production association Ganja Automobile Plant there is a joint assembly production of tractor equipment.

Since 2017, the Trade House of Azerbaijan has been operating in Minsk, which has been granted preferential treatment for the supply of food products to the Belarusian market.