First Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Uzbekistan Ilkhom Nematov met with Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Belarus Leonid Marinich.

At the meeting, the results of bilateral relations for 2018 and promising areas of their further development in 2019 were discussed.

As it was emphasized, the official visit of the President of the Republic of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko on September 12-14, 2018 to Uzbekistan and his negotiations with President Shavkat Mirziyoyev brought cooperation between the two countries to a new level, filling it with concrete practical content.

94 bilateral trade contracts worth 259.2 million USD and 19 investment documents worth more than 54 million USD were signed during the visit. Over the past year, the trade turnover between the two countries amounted to 419.9 million USD, showing growth by 130%.

In this context, proposals of the parties on unconditional implementation of arrangements reached at the highest level and agreements signed during the visit were considered.

According to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Uzbekistan, at the meeting, the sides exchanged views on the return visit of the President of Uzbekistan to Belarus, as well as the schedule and agenda for conducting the next meeting of the Joint Intergovernmental Commission, inter-MFA political consultations, the Joint Forum of Business and Interregional Cooperation, the Tourism Forum.

The parties discussed other relevant issues of mutual interest.