Orsha is named as an example of the development of interregional cooperation within the framework of the Union State

The issue of the role of business in the development of interregional economic ties was one of the main topics at the meeting of the Commission of the Parliamentary Assembly on Budget and Finance, which was held in Orsha on the initiative of Lyudmila Dobrynina, Deputy Chairperson of the Commission of the Parliamentary Assembly on Budget and Finance, Chairperson of the Standing Commission of the House of Representatives of the National Assembly of the Republic of Belarus on Budget and Finance.

– It was decided to focus the work of the Parliamentary Assembly on contacts between the regions of our countries, on integration "on the ground," – emphasized Nikolay Gonchar, Chairperson of the Commission of the Parliamentary Assembly on Budget and Finance, member of the Committee of the State Duma of Russia on Budget and Taxes. – And Orsha is a unique example in this regard. The district has economic ties with 62 subjects of the Russian Federation.

Parliamentarians visited an exhibition where the region's largest enterprises presented their products. For example, the Orsha Meat Canning Plant is famous for its stewed meat and children's meat preserves, which are not produced by anyone else in the CIS. For several years now, the Orsha Dairy Plant has been bottling milk for its strategic partner, the Dmitrovsky Dairy Plant. The products of the Orsha Bakery are in high demand among neighboring countries. As noted by Sergey Pats, First Deputy Chairman of the Orsha District Executive Committee, many business contacts were established during the "Orsha Traditions" exhibition fair and the International Economic Forum, which are traditionally held in the city at the end of April.

– The deepening of integration processes, the development of the Union State – this is primarily the strengthening and expansion of interregional ties, – summarized Lyudmila Dobrynina. – Close attention has been paid to such cooperation for the last 5 years. Agreements, joint projects – not only between administrations and city halls, the main thing is that business is working in this direction. A

consequently, the economy in our regions is working and the Union State is developing.

 The meeting also discussed the program "Innovative Development of Flax Complexes of the Russian Federation and the Republic of Belarus". The leading economic entity of the region, the Orsha Flax Mill, was one of the main executors of the Union State program "Increasing the profitability of flax production and processing based on progressive resource-saving technologies and equipment for 1998-2000". Now it will participate in a new Union program. Parliamentarians visited the flax mill, identified existing problems and what needs to be done for its prompt approval.

– The first step should be support for farmers under the Union program, – noted Lyudmila Dobrynina. – New flax varieties, modern approaches and technologies – everything should be integrated.

Oleg Lesnov, Deputy Head of the Department of Economics and Sectoral Programs of the Standing Committee of the Union State, informed the deputies about the progress of joint programs and the development of new ones. He separately dwelled on the problems faced by representatives of the Standing Committee and agencies acting as state customers.

Nikolay Martynov, member of the Commission of the Parliamentary Assembly for Budget and Finance, member of the Standing Commission of the Council of the Republic of the National Assembly of the Republic of Belarus for Economy, Budget and Finance, responding to a question about the reserves of regional cooperation, noted that more successful work requires improving legislation.

– There are nuances that hinder both Russian and Belarusian businesses. In a single space, everything should be maximally unified, – he said.

Another key issue on the two-day agenda of the meeting was the historical and cultural heritage of the two countries, and the potential of the Belarusian-Russian border region. Interest in the topic is particularly relevant in the year of the 950th anniversary of Orsha. A representative of the Youth Chamber of Smolensk proposed specific steps for interaction between the two neighboring regions – the creation of a joint patriotic