Belarus plans series of Customs Union presentations for western businessmen

MINSK, 17 September (BelTA) – The Belarusian Foreign Ministry is planning to organize a series of presentations of the Customs Union (CU) for western businessmen, First Deputy Foreign Minister Alexander Mikhnevich said in an interview to the Kontury program on the ONT TV channel.

According to Alexander Mikhnevich, the western business community does not have enough information on the Customs Union. "Many people do not understand what kind of association it is, what advantages it brings to each of the countries. We have this idea to organize so-called road shows, a series of presentations of the Customs Union in the business environment in the west, and I think it will be supported by our Russian and Kazakhstani counterparts,” said the First Deputy Minister.

Alexander Mikhnevich believes that it is better to start road shows from London, where in 2008 Belarus organized its investment forum for representatives of the international business community.

Alexander Mikhnevich was appointed First Deputy Foreign Minister of Belarus in September. Before that he served as Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Republic of Belarus to the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

Commenting on his work as a diplomat, Alexander Mikhnevich noted that it was not the best period of political relations between Belarus and the UK.

“We did not stop trying to show our counterparts that with more respect to each other we could reach much more in the bilateral dialogue. On the other hand, I am happy to see the UK among the leading investors in the Belarusian economy, including FDI,” he said.

The First Deputy Foreign Minister added that he would continue paying close attention to the Belarus-UK projects that are under implementation until the new ambassador is appointed so that to avoid vacuum in the business contacts.