Belarus president's visit to Egypt gives strong thrust to bilateral cooperation

Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko's visit to Egypt in January gave a strong thrust to the two countries' ties, said Belarus ambassador in Cairo Sergei Rachkov.

In statements to MENA on Tuesday, the diplomat said a delegation, led by the first Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Food of Belarus, will visit Egypt in July to discuss bilateral cooperation in the agriculture and food supply fields.

The delegation will also set the stage for a visit by a delegation of the Ministry of Transport and Communications to Cairo to discuss boosting bilateral cooperation and exchanging expertise in the railway domain, Rachkov said.

He added that another delegation will visit Cairo in July to mull the establishment of a wastewater treatment plant in Egypt using "Bio Block" technology and prepare for a visit by experts from "Belshina" and "Belkommunmash" companies for talks with the Egyptian Military Production Ministry on manufacturing tires and agricultural equipment.

Egypt and Belarus are currently holding consultations to discuss arrangements for President Abdel Fattah El Sisi's visit to Minsk, Rachkov said.

As for trade exchange between the two countries, it reached 57.8 million dollars in 2016, including 42.35 million dollars of Belarus exports to Egypt, Rachkov said.

The volume of trade exchange between Cairo and Minsk doubled from January to April, compared to the same period in 2016, he noted.

He underlined that Minsk Automobile Plant participated in the Military Production Ministry's booth at Cairo International Fair held in March by displaying "MAZ" heavy-duty trucks and concrete mixers.

For the first time, several Belarusian companies took part in "Food Africa 2017" in April, he added.

He further underlined that his country did not impose any restrictions on Belarusian tourists' visit to Egypt, saying that nearly 135,000 Belarusian tourists visited Egypt in 2015 and 2016. 

Shifting to the issue of terrorism, Rachkov said that his country backed Egyptian efforts to eradicate terrorism and deplored all terrorist acts aiming at undermining Egypt's peace and stability

Source: MENA