Leaders of Vietnam and Belarus have agreed on proposals for economic and trade cooperation between the two countries, the governmental portal reported.
Prime Minister Nguyen Xuan Phuc (r) and Belarus’s Deputy Prime Minister Igor Lashenko (l). Source: VGP.
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According to Lashenko, Vietnam and Belarus would jointly kick start truck plant MAZ financed by the two countries on September 26 in Hung Yen province, saying he is committed to promoting more joint ventures between the two countries.
Lashenko expected the two countries to move from purely trading relation to establishment of joint ventures of industrial production.
Lashenko added Vietnam’s development strategy is similar to that of Belarus, which focuses on innovation and raising people’s income.
Belarus currently has a large-scale tire manufacturing plant using raw rubber from Vietnam, Lashenko said, and proposed the establishment of a joint venture for tire manufacturing in Belarus using Vietnamese raw materials and later export to Eurasian economies.
Lashenko also proposed creating a joint venture in producing potassium fertilizer in Vietnam, and export more diary and meat products to Vietnamese market.
With expertise on biotechnology and IT, Lashenko hoped the two countries would continue to cooperate in these fields.
PM Phuc said Lashenko’s presence at the inauguration ceremony of the joint-venture truck manufacturing plant indicates special attention of the Belarusian government to bilateral economic projects.
Vietnam is willing to create favorable conditions for the plant to operate efficiently with target markets being ASEAN countries, Phuc added.
Phuc said the automotive manufacturing sector is a priority field in Vietnam, for which the government is expected to issue resolutions guiding the development of the sector.
At the meeting, both leaders expressed belief the bilateral trade turnover would soon reach US$500 million.
