FM: Belarus looks into ways to enter Afghanistan market

Belarus is studying the possibilities of entering the market of Afghanistan, Belarusian Minister of Foreign Affairs Vladimir Makei told the media in Dushanbe on 12 October, BelTA has learned.

“We had a fairly high level of cooperation with Afghanistan in the past years. We supplied equipment to Afghanistan and exchanged visits within the frames of the political dialogue. Unfortunately, there is a pause at this stage, but we are interested in having and developing trade and economic cooperation with this country,” said Vladimir Makei.

Earlier, the Belarusian ambassador to Tajikistan was concurrently accredited to Afghanistan. “We had indeed good prospects for cooperation with Afghanistan. Taking into account the whole set of current issues, we are now thinking about the ways to tap into the market of this country, as well,” the minister said.

At the same time Belarus should take into consideration the international restrictions against Afghanistan. “We strictly follow the principles of international law in this regard. However, given the fact that people live there with humanitarian problems, including those related to hunger, we have to think about that. I think there are certain aspects and areas where we can develop cooperation, in strict compliance with international restrictions, if they exist,” the diplomat said.