The extended business trip of the President of Belarus to foreign countries has been completed. Tens of thousands of kilometres and dozens of hours of negotiations: in 11 days, the Head of State visited four regions of the world — Central and Southeast Asia, the Middle East and North Africa. This is not just a route. This is a path of economic integration, the convergence of interests, the search for new opportunities and the strengthening of existing ties. Belarus has long been showing interest in far-abroad countries. Yet, not only Minsk is looking for promising areas, but also the Global South countries — viewing Belarus as a new beacon of growth and support — are striving to establish mutually beneficial relations with our country. In previous issues, we introduced readers to the results of the President’s visits to Kyrgyzstan, Myanmar and Oman. After that, Aleksandr Lukashenko visited Algeria and returned to Oman. Read about the nuances and details of the new stage of the Belarusian leader’s rigorous international itinerary in our material.
‘Under no circumstances should we delay’
Belarus’ President Aleksandr Lukashenko paid an official visit to the People’s Democratic Republic of Algeria. It was the first top-level visit in the history of relations between the two countries.Upon arrival in Algeria, Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko met with Speaker of the People’s National Assembly. “Our relations have gained momentum in recent years, and we should advance further along this path. However, the current level of trade between our countries falls far short of their true potential. We have held a forum of the business communities of Belarus and Algeria here, establishing direct relations between companies. I believe we will manage to significantly boost trade. We are people of our word and will honour our commitments. There will be no delays on our part,” Aleksandr Lukashenko said.
Belarus and Algeria should develop a fully functional plan for their relations, Belarus’ President Aleksandr Lukashenko said later during a meeting with Prime Minister Sifi Ghrieb of Algeria. “I understand well what Algeria means for Africa. We co-operate with many countries on the African continent. After all, the future belongs to Africa,” the Belarusian leader emphasised. “If the Algerian side wishes to co-operate with us — and I know they do as we have extensive experience in co-operation, primarily from the era of the Soviet Union... We have this experience, and we must harness it and move in this direction, addressing the pressing issues that concern your people and our people. We must hurry; we must act swiftly. Under no circumstances should we delay; such is the call of the time,” the Head of State summarised.
‘Algeria is a global gateway to Africa’
Belarusian Head of State Aleksandr Lukashenko and Algerian President Abdelmadjid Tebboune held negotiations in a narrow format and an expanded one while focusing on stepping up trade and economic co-operation and implementing mutually beneficial bilateral projects. The leaders discussed prospects of deliveries of machines, vehicles and equipment, prospects of manufacturing co-operation, interaction in agribusiness, healthcare, education and humanitarian affairs as a whole.As a result of the negotiations a number of bilateral documents was signed on advancing co-operation in various fields. “Last year, we reached $50 million in mutual trade. For the potential that we and Algeria possess, this is a laughable figure. We must, within the next year or two (the President and I agreed on this), reach at least $500 million,” Aleksandr Lukashenko told the media following the talks.
“I can confidently state that the talks with my counterpart were quite specific. We discussed the entire bilateral agenda, as well as the current international situation,” the Belarusian leader said. “Our positions coincide on essentially all issues of the international agenda. Our talks today, if they concern anyone (and as I understood from the President’s words, they do), are absolutely not directed against third countries. We conducted the negotiations on an equal footing, in the interests of our peoples.”
“Algeria is a global gateway to Africa. Herein lies our pragmatism. I told my friend and comrade, the President of Algeria, this very thing. We have discussed many topics, but there is no need to drag all these matters up to the highest level. Two days ago, we held an excellent forum here where the heads of our companies and corporations met. They see the concrete issues and have agreed on much. No topics are off-limits. This includes not only humanitarian issues and agriculture but also the military-industrial complex,” the Belarusian leader emphasised.
In this regard, Aleksandr Lukashenko noted that it is no secret that Algeria primarily possesses weaponry based on technology from the Soviet era, which is now procured from post-Soviet countries. “When it comes to repairing and modernising this equipment, there are no competitors in the post-Soviet space today. Yet, we are now capable of not just modernising and repairing armaments; we can produce many types of weaponry independently,” the Belarusian leader remarked.
“As for mechanical engineering (and Belarus is a machine-building country), the President said they are interested in establishing joint ventures for the production of tractors and automobiles. That is our field. We are ready to work on this. It is unlikely we will have competitors in terms of price or quality,” the President said. “We are ready to share our technology with you. We can supply the corresponding equipment based on these technologies and produce it together. And, if necessary, train your personnel in these technologies.”
According to him, Algeria is particularly in great need of Belarusian agricultural machinery and farming technologies, as without them, it is impossible to address the issue of food security. Regarding one of the major projects in this area, Aleksandr Lukashenko also suggested implementing it as a trilateral venture, together with Oman, in the fertiliser production sector.
“What pleasantly surprised me is that the President of Algeria has excellent relations with the Sultan of Oman and with that state. They co-operate very closely. They are our friends. I have known the Sultan of Oman for 20 years. And, as many have noted, we have good relations too,” the Head of State said.
“A very interesting topic has emerged. The Algerian President said that in the near future he will have so many phosphates that he won’t know what to do with them. And we know how to produce phosphate fertilisers. We produce a huge amount of nitrogen fertilisers. Algeria is a country that holds leading positions in the extraction and export of natural gas. It is a member of OPEC. That means it produces a huge amount of oil. But if there is gas, then there are nitrogen fertilisers. We also have large quantities of potash fertilisers. Once Algeria has its own phosphates, they can and should be used to make fertilisers. We have technologies for all types of mineral fertilisers. In Oman, which is a crossroads of all trade routes, we could build a joint enterprise, together with Algeria and Oman, as I told the President [of Algeria]. By investing, we could construct a plant using well-established technologies to produce a huge amount of mineral fertilisers needed in Algeria, in this region, and especially in Africa,” Aleksandr Lukashenko said.The Head of State emphasised the relevance of this issue in connection with the need to address hunger in a number of countries and to ensure food security on the African continent. “Without fertilisers and technologies this is impossible, which is why this is our topic. And in this direction we can co-operate excellently,” the Belarusian leader stressed.
The President further noted that Algeria is interested in dairy and meat production. “That is our forte. We are always capable and have already begun co-operating in this regard,” he emphasised.
Another promising direction is co-operation in education. Algeria graduates a large number of specialists from its universities every year, and doctors from this country, in particular, make up a very significant proportion of medical professionals in France. “That says it all. There was a reason they fought against French colonialism,” the Belarusian leader said.
Aleksandr Lukashenko noted that Algeria well remembers the era of co-operation with the Soviet Union and that the delegation from Belarus is now received as good and reliable friends.
The Head of State observed that Algeria has made a powerful leap in its development over the past years and has succeeded in many areas. “Everyone is eager to come here. Of course, Algeria is selective. It co-operates primarily with states that are friendly towards it. Everyone wants to work here and already is. Algeria has excellent relations with Spain, Germany, Italy,” the President said. “That’s why I began to wonder: I thought, where is our place in Algeria? When the President continued his account, I understood that we can always find our place to work among our friends.”
Aleksandr Lukashenko invited Algerian representatives during the talks to visit Belarus to study the existing opportunities. “The doors are open for Algerians as our reliable, good friends. If something suits and appeals to you, we are ready to co-operate and work with you. But not in the way the colonialists once did. We are ready to co-operate as friends, as close people,” the Head of State said. “47 million people, a vast country with the greatest potential. This is a place to work. We have agreed on much. This is not a beginning. We are elevating our relations to a higher level. And going forward, we will accomplish a great deal more.”
Abdelmadjid Tebboune also commented on the outcome of the talks, “We have assessed the progress in our bilateral relations. We spoke about key issues and discussed our plan for 2026–2027. We have agreed to support investments in agriculture, mechanical engineering, pharmaceuticals and scientific research. Our ministers have discussed all matters concerning trade.”
The Algerian President highlighted the potential for growth in bilateral trade.
Abdelmadjid Tebboune stated that during the negotiations, the Presidents also discussed a number of international issues, including the situations in Palestine and Libya. The question of resolving the conflict in Ukraine was also discussed. The heads of state agreed that it must be resolved peacefully through negotiations.
OFFICIALLY
Following the official talks in Algiers, Aleksandr Lukashenko and Abdelmadjid Tebboune signed a joint statement on bolstering friendship and partnership ties between Belarus and Algeria.The leaders of the two countries have also signed a number of documents, with a roadmap to develop bilateral co-operation in 2026–2027 as its centerpiece.
During his official visit to Algeria, Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko also laid a wreath at the Martyr’s Memorial in Algiers and toured the National Martyrs’ Museum (National Museum of Moudjahid).
The Martyr’s Memorial is one of the symbols of the Algerian people’s struggle for independence and a tribute to the victims of the war with France (1954–1962).
The museum houses an exhibition on the national liberation movement, featuring photographs, documents, weapons and dioramas. The museum vividly presents scenes of the Algerian struggle and the repression they endured during the War of Independence.
Based on materials of sb.by and belta.by
