Vitebsk Region strengthens ties with China, India and Slovakia

Bridges of Friendship

Slavianski Bazaar in Vitebsk International Forum became not only an image-building event of the summer for the Vitebsk Region, but also a great opportunity to strengthen business ties with friendly countries. In the last few days, a significant part of the business programme included meetings between Chairman of the Vitebsk Regional Executive Committee Aleksandr Subbotin and the ambassadors of China, India and the Slovak Republic.

To new heights

During the meeting at the Vitebsk Regional Execute Committee, Zhang Wenchuan, the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of China to Belarus, stated that the Chinese delegation immediately felt the hospitality of the Vitebsk Region since the first days of their visit.

“Our delegation attended the opening concert of the Slavianski Bazaar Festival, where President of Belarus Aleksandr Lukashenko was giving a speech, and we were impressed by what we saw. We have just had a quite positive meeting with the Chairman of the Vitebsk Regional Executive Committee. We agreed to further strengthen our friendly interregional contacts and extend the exchange of delegations. We also intend to strengthen co-operation in agriculture, industry, culture, education and tourism,” Zhang Wenchuan noted.

Zhang Wenchuan

The Chinese Ambassador also emphasised that President of China Xi Jinping and President of Belarus Aleksandr Lukashenko are setting the tone of bilateral relations through their personal example of genuine friendship.

“Thanks to this, relations between China and Belarus are at the highest level, and interregional co-operation is one of the areas that the leaders of our countries focus on. With the friendly support of the Vitebsk Region Executive Committee authorities, co-operation between the Vitebsk Region and the regions of China will reach new heights,” Zhang Wenchuan stated.

Aleksandr Subbotin, Chairman of the Vitebsk Regional Executive Committee, is confident that the specific steps have already been taken, and the current visit of the Chinese diplomatic mission will further enhance interaction level in the most relevant areas.

“We see solid opportunities to deepen joint activities between enterprises and scientific organisations, cultural and educational establishments, and sports and tourism institutions, as well as to create the most favourable conditions for attracting investors. These areas can significantly improve trade, scientific, technical, industrial and other economic ties, contributing to the both economies’ development and improving population’s quality of life,” he stated.

Bilateral interest

Jozef Migas, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Slovak Republic to Belarus, discussed the state of bilateral ties in various spheres at the meeting with Aleksandr Subbotin. He believes that at the moment, co-operation with the Vitebsk Region in a number of areas has slightly lost ground.

“I was the Ambassador in 2016 and 2020, and I was often coming to have meetings with the authorities of the Vitebsk Region and the city of Vitebsk. At that time, we worked closely in healthcare, pharmaceutical production and education. My primary task is to restore the ground — in order for us to once again reach the proper level of co-operation and, of course, begin to move forward. Both the Belarusian and Slovak sides have this intention. My meeting with the Chairman of the Vitebsk Regional Executive Committee is clearly motivated by this goal — hence, we will work on it,” Jozef Migas noted.

The Slovak Ambassador also expressed his gratitude to the local authorities for the care they offered the Slovak delegation at the Slavic Bazaar, “"I am glad that I have visited this large-scale forum again, for the fifth time — it is a wonderful celebration of the Slavic peoples. The Slavianski Bazaar Festival has become a European and global treasure. Every year I came here, I noticed that the festival was constantly developing and improving, and I was delighted with its scale and the overall friendly atmosphere. This highlights Belarus' commitment to leading a path of creation and peace and its keeping loyalty to the forum's motto — Through Art to Peace and Mutual Understanding! I think this is a wonderful event and I congratulate all Belarusians on it!”