Dhaka-Minsk ties

In Belarus, Bangladesh has made a new friend on what may be seen as breaking new ground. Since the contributions of the USSR -- of which Belarus was then a part -- during our liberation war, and the establishment of diplomatic relations with the independent nation in 1991, the recent visit of the country's Prime Minister to Bangladesh has brought the first sure signs of promise of a mutually beneficial relationship between the two countries.
During Prime Minister Myasnikovich's three-day visit to Bangladesh, Dhaka and Minsk have signed seven agreements and five memoranda of understanding (MOU). The seven agreements pertain, among other things, to promotion and protection of investment and cooperation on science, technology and education. The five MOUs relate to cooperation in the legal sphere, agro-industrial manufacturing, aquaculture and more.
Under these, there is opportunity for Bangladesh to export clothing, jute yarn, tobacco, fish and other marine products, as well as to benefit from Belarusian expertise in the area of milk production and dairy industry. Following a visit to Square Pharmaceuticals, which has contributed to Bangladesh's development as one of the fastest growing pharmaceutical manufacturing hubs in the developing world, Belarus has also agreed to import pharmaceutical products and technological expertise from the company. We believe that both are areas with much room for exploration, enhancement and benefit to Bangladesh. In addition, cooperation in the education sector as well as intersectoral dialogue between not only in the public sector but also the private and other nongovernmental bodies will serve to enrich the exchanges between the two countries.
Bangladesh will surely return the positive gestures of Belarus which were apparent in the visit of the country's PM. We hope that, leading on from this visit, both Dhaka and Minsk will continue to pursue, explore and indeed implement these and other possible avenues of mutual cooperation and benefit.