April 25, Minsk /Vasily Malashenkov - BELTA/. Belarus and the UAE will develop proposals to ease visa procedures by the end of the year, as reported to journalists today by the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Belarus, Vladimir Makei, following the signing ceremony of international documents based on the results of the first meeting of the joint cooperation committee between the Government of Belarus and the Government of the United Arab Emirates, as reported by BELTA correspondent.
"Today we signed an agreement on visa exemption for holders of diplomatic passports. But we agreed that this is only the first step. We will work towards developing proposals to ease visa procedures for citizens of our countries by the end of the year," said the Belarusian minister. He added that this would require certain coordination, but the parties are ready to move in this direction.
Following the committee meeting, an agreement on the exchange of plots for diplomatic missions and a protocol were also signed, which includes the entire list of Belarusian-Emirati agreements reached during the two-day visit of the UAE delegation to Belarus. "We have indeed reached a number of concrete agreements in the fields of industry, agriculture, transport, communications, education, and science," noted Vladimir Makei. Within six months, these agreements will be worked out and analyzed, and the parties will come up with a concrete cooperation program. According to the minister, the cooperation potential between the two countries is far from exhausted. "We note the existence of opportunities for further enhancement of our cooperation in many areas," said Vladimir Makei. In particular, the interaction of the countries in the international arena was discussed at today's meeting. The minister emphasized that Belarus and the UAE have no problems in this area of cooperation.
He also noted that the UAE delegation that arrived in Belarus is quite representative. It includes representatives of both government bodies and private businesses. Guests from the UAE attended meetings in various ministries and visited enterprises and tourist sites. Based on the results of the Emirati delegation's stay in Belarus, 8 bilateral documents were concluded. "We have created a solid legal framework, which will include almost three dozen documents," reported Vladimir Makei. He stressed that the Belarusian side is satisfied with the results of the negotiations.