Belarus Hopes Exports to Russia Will Reach $22-23 Bln by End of Year — Prime Minister

This number much bigger than in all previous years, Roman Golovchenko says

© Anton Novoderezhkin/TASS

MINSK, December 24. /TASS/. Minsk is hopeful that at the end of the outgoing year the amount of Belarusian exports to Russia will be about $22-23 billion, Belarusian Prime Minister Roman Golovchenko said on Saturday.

"As the results of the ten months show, exports to the Russian Federation amounted to $18 billion. This is much bigger than in all the previous years. I will give you the average figure for our exports in previous years, it is $12-13 billion per year. Now we have $18 [billion] over the ten months, and I think, I hope, that we will have about $22-23 billion by the end of the year," he said in a video released on Saturday by the Belarusian government’s press service.

Golovchenko pointed out that currently the export rate was even higher, as multiple engineering products are being shipped at the end of the year, so Belarus’ proportion in Russian imports is growing. The Belarusian prime minister emphasized that economic cooperation between Moscow and Minsk is being strengthened.

"Particularly [if we] take into account the fact that the Russian economy is demonstrating quite positive rates and is successfully coping with sanctions, as well as the Republic of Belarus, in other words, both of us are successfully coping," he said.

According to the prime minister, all preconditions show that next year would not be worse than this one.

The Belarusian prime minister said that the exports plans of Belarus had already been brought to life in 70 Russian regions.

"In my opinion, the export is more than $100 million in 14 Russian regions," he concluded.