China-Belarus Industrial Park envisaged as part of new Silk Road project

The China-Belarus Industrial Park may become part of the Chinese project Silk Road. Possibilities for developing the industrial park in view of the Silk Road project were discussed at a meeting of Belarusian Economy Minister Nikolai Snopkov and Secretary of the Party Committee of the Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region of China Zhang Chunxian, the press service of the Belarusian Economy Ministry told BelTA.

Among other things the sides discussed possibilities of developing the China-Belarus Industrial Park as part of the project to build the economic belt Silk Road. The start of the project’s implementation was announced by China President Xi Jinping in autumn 2013. The project is supposed to unite economic interests of the countries located between the Pacific Ocean and the Baltic Sea. Plans have been made to set up a transit transport system that will unite China and Central Asia and will connect this region with Africa and Europe.

Nikolai Snopkov remarked that Belarus is ready to participate in the implementation of the initiative, all the necessary infrastructure is available in the country, while the emerging China-Belarus Industrial Park may serve as a transportation and logistics hub.

The meeting also touched upon the creation of a special mechanism for interaction between Belarus and the Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region of China. The mechanism will be implemented as an interregional working group under the commission for trade and economic cooperation of the Belarusian-Chinese intergovernmental committee. The first session of the committee is scheduled to take place in Beijing on 4 September.

Apart from that, the Belarusian Economy Minister presented Belarus’ investment climate and the China-Belarus industrial park Great Stone within the framework of the international expo China-Eurasia in the city of Urumqi on 3 September.