Yosef Migash: Belarusian-Slovak cooperation must reach a qualitatively new level

Belarusian-Slovak relations should be moved to the plane of practical implementation of investment projects. This was stated today by the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Slovakia to Belarus, Jozef Migash, at a meeting with the Chairman of the Vitebsk Regional Executive Committee, Nikolai Sherstnev.

\"The Vitebsk region is one of the best with which Slovak structures manage to work. I hope that in the future relations will develop in the same vein. We are preparing to participate in the festival 'Slavianski Bazaar in Vitebsk' and would like to start working in a new way, to give our relations a new quality, - said the diplomat. - We need to focus on investment projects, concentrating on their practical implementation. For now, we see that there are projects, intentions are outlined, but there are issues with practical implementation\".

Jozef Migash emphasized that the parties need to concentrate on projects that will bring mutual benefit. \"Which are needed by you and useful for us in terms of our investments being able to work in them. I believe that we should create joint ventures\", - stated the Slovak ambassador and added that we should focus on innovative projects.

Among the possible areas of cooperation, the diplomat named machine building and automotive industry, energy, woodworking, and pharmaceuticals. Speaking about the production of medicines, the diplomat noted that Slovakia is ready to consider options for trilateral cooperation.

"If we find opportunities for cooperation in this area, let's work in the triangle of Cuba, Belarus, Slovakia," the ambassador expressed his interest. After the meeting at the regional executive committee, the diplomat visited RUP "Vitebskenergo", where issues of constructing hydroelectric power plants on the Western Dvina River were discussed. The program also includes familiarization with the production of OJSC "Vitebskdrev", where it is planned to discuss the possibility of organizing export supplies of products from the Vitebsk enterprise.

As explained in the regional executive committee, the annual trade turnover of the Vitebsk region with Slovakia until 2015 was $15-16 million, in 2015 it decreased to $5 million (with exports amounting to $800 thousand, imports $4.3 million). Slovak direct investments are practically absent in the region, although the products offered by Slovak companies are competitive. Dairy and meat industry enterprises have repeatedly purchased equipment from the Slovak company "Vzduchotorg" based on tender results.

Alena Tikhonova, BELTA.