Rawalpindi, 3 December 2021 (TDI): Today Andrei Metelitsa, Ambassador of Belarus called on General Qamar Javed Bajwa, Chief of Army Staff (COAS) at GHQ.
Regarding Afghanistan, both also discussed the potential in defense cooperation regional security, the current situation in Afghanistan & collaboration/partnership in Humanitarian measures.
COAS said that Pakistan values Belarus’s role in global and regional affairs and we look forward to enhancing their bilateral relationship. COAS also emphasized the urgency for swiftly devising an institutional mechanism. This mechanism is to channel humanitarian assistance to Afghanistan to avert a looming humanitarian catastrophe.
The visiting dignitary appreciated Pakistan’s role in the Afghan situation, special efforts for border management, role in regional stability. Metelitsa also pledged to play his part for further improvement in diplomatic cooperation with Pakistan at all levels.
BILATERAL RELATIONS PAKISTAN-BELARUS
The Islamic Republic of Pakistan established relations with Belarus in 1994. Both celebrated the 25th Anniversary of their relations in 2019. Belarus has had an Embassy in Islamabad since 2014. On the other side, Pakistan also has an Embassy in Belarus.
The first official visit was from the President of Belarus, Alexander Lukashenko, who visited Pakistan in 2015. The Prime Minister of Pakistan, Imran Khan, met Lukashenko twice. Once in Kyrgyzstan in 2019, the second in Tajikistan in 2021.
According to the Embassy of Belarus, both signed the Declaration of Belarus-Pakistan Partnership in 2015. In 2015, they signed the Treaty on Friendship and Cooperation between the Republic of Belarus and the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. Then in 2016, Pakistan and Belarus signed the Joint Statement of the President of Belarus and the Prime Minister of Pakistan.
TRADE AND ECONOMIC RELATIONS
Pakistan and Belarus have seven mechanisms for bilateral cooperation. The first one is the Joint Belarusian-Pakistani Commission on Trade and Economic Cooperation. The second one is the Joint Belarusian-Pakistani Commission on Cooperation in Science and Technology.
The third mechanism is the Joint Belarusian-Pakistani Commission on Military-Technical Cooperation. Then it’s the Belarusian-Pakistani Business Council. Both countries also have the Joint Belarusian-Pakistani Working Group on Agriculture and the Joint Working Group on Industrial Cooperation. The last mechanism between Pakistan and Belarus is the Joint Working Group on Cooperation in the field of health and pharmaceuticals.
According to the Embassy of Belarus in Pakistan, Pakistan exports several products to Belarus like rice, vegetables, fruits, leather products, textiles, surgical and sports equipment.
On the other side, Belarus exports to Pakistan tractors, spare parts, trucks, fertilizers, baby food, machine tools, and others. Then the Embassy of Belarus mentioned that in January-August of 2021, the total trade amounted to 53.2 million.
COOPERATION IN EDUCATION, SCIENCE, AND CULTURE
The Ministries of Education from both countries signed an agreement to set the bases of their cooperation, during the visit of the Belarusian delegation in 2015. The National University of Modern Languages of Pakistan opened a center to teach the Belarusian language, in 2016. In 2017, Minsk State Linguistic University opened the Department of Urdu language.
