OREANDA-NEWS. December 13, 2013. Moldova and Belarus have managed to achieve the goals set for 2013 in the economic cooperation process, said Economics Minister Valeriu Lazar at the end of a meeting of the Moldovan-Belarusian intergovernmental commission on trade and economic cooperation.

"We set out ambitious objectives, to increase the exchange of goods and switch to a new higher stage in the carrying out of projects. And we succeeded, even if not completely, in a not at all easy year”, said Valeriu Lazar.

The economics minister stressed that the trade exchanges between the two countries had increased by six per cent this year. The foreign trade structure, including semi-finished elements for the industrial production, has improved.

"Belarus is an important trade partner for us. Today, we witnessed the signing of agreements that represent a continuation of the projects launched last year. It is about delivering subunits for manufacturing trolleys and tractors. We see that this cooperation becomes deeper,” said the deputy prime minister.

"Our goal, and we talked about it at the meeting of the joint committee, is to reach a value of trade exchanges worth half a billion dollars in 2015", said Belarusian Deputy Prime Minister Mikhail Rusii.

The Belarusian official said the sides had set strategic trends for collaboration, and as a result, they signed dozens of contracts, determined new directions of cooperation, aimed at switching from providing subunits to creating joint ventures. Belarus is willing to participate, including financially, in deepening new development directions, especially in industry, repair and construction of roads, railway transport, said Mikhail Rusii.

Ten priority areas of cooperation, including trade, industry, transport, agriculture, construction, energy, telecommunications, pharmaceuticals, culture and sports, were on the agenda of the commission. At the end, the sides signed a protocol of the meeting of the intergovernmental commission for economic cooperation between Moldova and Belarus, as well as a bilateral agreement on the supply of 50 trolleybus sub-assemblies from Belarus to be assembled in Chisinau. Also, the sides signed an agreement on the supply of parts for the assembly of tractors in Chisinau.

Representatives of 22 Belarusian companies from such areas as: pharmaceutics, constructions, the agro-industrial sector, the machine-building industry, attended the Moldovan-Belarusian business forum held in Chisinau.