On May 26, Vitebsk / Diana Kurilo - BELTA /. Azerbaijan's Mingachevir and Armenia's Alaverdi have become sister cities with Polotsk. Cooperation agreements were signed during the festive celebrations in the ancient Belarusian city, as reported by BELTA correspondent. Today, in a solemn ceremony, a sister city agreement with Alaverdi was signed. The document was signed on behalf of the cities by Alexander Poznyak, Chairman of the Polotsk City Executive Committee, and Artavazd Varosyan, Mayor of Alaverdi. Armen Khachatryan, the Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Armenia to Belarus, who also attended the ceremony, congratulated Polotsk on its 1150th anniversary, noting that Polotsk is a symbol of spirituality and culture, a city of great Christian traditions. The Armenian and Belarusian peoples share the same aspiration for further cooperation and strengthening of fraternal ties, the ambassador added. Polotsk and Alaverdi intend to promote the establishment and expansion of bilateral economic, scientific, technical, cultural, and humanitarian cooperation, and to create conditions for direct contacts between business entities of all forms of ownership. The Armenian and Belarusian cities also confirmed their interest in developing relations in the humanitarian sphere. The agreement will facilitate the establishment and development of direct ties between educational institutions, cultural and sports organizations, museums and theaters, and media outlets. As emphasized by Alexander Poznyak, Chairman of the Polotsk City Executive Committee, the cities' contacts will develop in various directions. Polotsk has long-standing contacts with Armenia. Recently, the city hosted a children's drawing competition "Armenia Through the Eyes of Children" and an exhibition of Armenian literature. Entrepreneurs from the friendly country have begun to show interest in Polotsk, with an Armenian cuisine café being the first sign of this. On May 25, a joint statement on sister city relations between Polotsk and Mingachevir was signed, aimed at fostering the development of relations between the cities. Priorities in the relationship will include establishing business contacts, promoting trade and tourism, and exchange and cooperation in education and culture. Niyazi Bayramov, Head of the Executive Authority of Mingachevir, told journalists that the Azerbaijani delegation was captivated by the hospitality and beauty of Polotsk. He is confident that friendly contacts between the two cities will contribute to mutual understanding and further cooperation between Azerbaijan and Belarus.