The Chairman of Belaya Rus, Alexander Radkov, has been liaising with the Polish political party for many years, drawing attention to common interests. He explains, “We’ll be stronger if we nurture our relations with other countries around the world, including those in Europe, respecting their sovereignty and policies, while promoting our own interests: political, commercial and economic. We consider Self-defence to be a reliable partner, representing the interests of ordinary people intent on working to support their families. Everyone has the right to this.”
The agreement defines the main directions of co-operation, with youth policy at the forefront and educational exchanges between Poland and Belarus planned. Mr. Kuropatwiński notes, “We like the attitude of Belaya Rus to youth policy. We’d like to see every young Pole able to find employment in their own country. Young people should feel that they have a vital role to play, as they do in Belarus. We can learn from you.”
The Polish party is also keen to learn from Belarusian agriculture, as Self-defence is positioning itself as the Agrarian Party. Mr. Kuropatwiński emphasises, “It is important that we have the same approach to solving global issues of economic, educational and cultural co-operation. Returning home, we’ll share all we’ve learnt.”
“Minsk is growing fast, with construction sites everywhere. You see the same cars as travel the streets of Poland — maybe even better. Your farming is very well developed, as we saw on visiting Zdanovichi Agro-combine, where up to 90kg of tomatoes are gathered per square metre. You are a developed European country worthy of admiration. You also have a strong processing industry, as we saw at a dairy plant, which makes a wider range of products than we have in Poland. In addition, we’d like our farmers to start buying Belarusian tractors.”
In the meantime, the organisation plans to share experience, organising thematic conferences and discussions. Joint youth and cultural exchanges are scheduled, while business circles will be liaising.
