Georgian PM, Belarusian President Discuss Strengthening Economic Ties

Georgian Prime Minister Mamuka Bakhtadze paid his first official visit to Minsk on August 23, meeting with Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko. At the meeting, President Lukashenko said cooperation between the two countries are exemplary, however, they have “small trade turnover.”

“Some time ago we started from zero and could not imagine how we could trade with Georgia due to the issues with the Russian Federation and other things. However, in a few years’ time we learned how to trade, and we see prospects,” Lukashenko stated. 

On his part, the Georgian Prime Minister said he is confident that Georgia and Belarus “will manage to double” their trade turnover. He also thanked Belarus for its “principled support” for Georgia’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.

Georgia’s trade turnover with Belarus, according to the State Statistics Office Geostat, stood at USD 87.2 million in 2018, with exports at USD 28.5 million (USD 27.5 million in 2017) and imports at USD 58.7 million (USD 67 million in 2017).

Georgian Foreign Minister Davit Zalkaliani, who is accompanying PM Bakhtadze in Minsk, also noted that “there are no problematic issues” in the bilateral relations on Georgia and Belarus, and that the two countries’ trade turnover “is increasing every year.”

As part of the visit, PM Bakhtadze held separate meetings with his Belarusian counterpart, Prime Minister Sergei Roumas and Chairman of the House of Representatives Vladimir Andreichenko.

This post is also available in: ქართული (Georgian) Русский (Russian)