Belarusian Prime Minister Aleksandr Turchin met with Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev in Baku on 6 May. During the meeting, Aleksandr Turchin outlined the prospects for developing trade and economic relations between Belarus and Azerbaijan.
The Prime Minister, visiting Baku for the first time, expressed his admiration for the city. He noted the striking contrast between ultra-modern buildings and old houses, all surrounded by lush greenery. "You can feel the careful attention given to the city's development," he remarked adding that the first day of the Belarusian delegation’s official visit to Azerbaijan, 5 May, was highly productive.
Aleksandr Turchin emphasized that joint production is a key area for strengthening cooperation between the two countries. Yesterday, he visited an Azerbaijani enterprise where a project to assemble Belarusian elevators is underway. "Localization has already reached 65% at the initial stage. This is a vivid example of a joint venture created by Belarusian and Azerbaijani partners," he stressed.
The Prime Minister also pointed out the significant potential of the Ganja Automobile Plant as a base for assembling Belarusian fire trucks, utility vehicles and tractors. "I see great prospects for Belarus-Azerbaijan cooperation in joint production. There are many new directions in which we could work together," he concluded.
Moreover, Belarusian Prime Minister Aleksandr Turchin laid wreaths at several significant monuments in Baku on 6 May during his official visit to Azerbaijan.
Aleksandr Turchin visited the Alley of Honor, located in the central part of Baku, where prominent Azerbaijani political and public figures are buried. It is a tradition for all foreign delegations visiting Azerbaijan to pay their respects at this site.
The Prime Minister laid wreaths at the grave of Heydar Aliyev, the national leader and father of the current Azerbaijani president, and flowers at the grave of his wife, Zarifa Aliyeva.
Heydar Aliyev was buried in the alley in December 2003. On the first anniversary of his passing, a monument was unveiled at his grave: a man-made hill with a granite pedestal at its base. Nearby are the graves of Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev’s relatives, including his mother.
Moreover, Belarusian Prime Minister Aleksandr Turchin together with Prime Minister Ali Asadov of Azerbaijan visited the revitalized territories of Azerbaijan on 6 May.
The Belarusian head of Government was welcomed by Ali Asadov at Fuzuli International Airport, and together they toured a small exposition about restoration of the destroyed sites. The Prime Minister got familiar with the general layouts of three residential complexes, the administrative center and the planned new look of the city. Aleksandr Turchin was also told about the works being carried out for the development of the city, about the infrastructure facilities under construction. After that, the heads of government went to the city itself.
The city is expected to have medium and low-rise residential buildings, individual houses, 9 general and secondary schools, 13 pre-school educational institutions, and a central district hospital for 180 bed space. It is also planned to create Victory and Memory Park, six smaller parks, a city square and an ecopark of 150 hectares.
Aleksandr Turchin together with Ali Asadov inspected the historical center of Fuzuli and the sites of future construction projects.
Next, the prime ministers of Belarus and Azerbaijan headed to Aghdam Industrial Park where the Belarusian head of Government got familiar with the resident companies. In particular, he toured the facilities producing construction industry footwear, transformers, and wallpaper.
Established in 2021 the park has 27 resident companies engaged in the production of construction materials, packaging of agricultural products, canning of fruits and vegetables, meat and dairy products, fodder and fertilizers and in designing service facilities, chambers and other equipment. The park has 32 registered projects and looks to attract more than $148 million in investment and create more than 2,100 jobs.
During the inspection of the revitalized facilities in Fuzuli, a MAZ-5907C2-012 utility vehicle was donated to the Restoration, Construction, and Management Service in the Aghdam, Fuzuli, and Khojavend regions.
Ali Asadov thanked Belarus for the gift and expressed hope for continuation of cooperation between MAZ and Ganja Automobile Plant. “MAZ products are well-known in Azerbaijan. Products of Minsk Tractor Plant are also in demand. This machinery has always been used in our country,” he said.
The heads of government visited the village of Gizil Kangarli, which is located in Agdam District. It is a picturesque and beautiful place, but there are practically no preserved objects in it. Aleksandr Turchin was shown the plan of economic development of the area, as well as the planned residential development. Plans are in place to build one-family houses of various sizes in this place. In addition, together with Belarus, it is planned to restore electric power facilities, road and transportation network, housing, utilities and other infrastructure.
Agreements were reached on the joint establishment of a complex agro-town in the village of Gizil Kangarli with the construction of agricultural facilities, housing and necessary infrastructure. It is planned to put 2,000 hectares of agricultural land into use, set up a poultry farm, a greenhouse for tomato and cucumber production, and also to build 460 residential houses, a kindergarten, a school, a polyclinic, an administration and other infrastructure.
Aleksandr Turchin spoke about Belarus’ possible assistance to Azerbaijan in its efforts to revitalize its territories during the official visit to Azerbaijan.
“I believe it is quite realistic to build a dairy complex here if there is enough fodder. The possibility should also be considered to build a greenhouse farm, if there are appropriate energy capacities,” Aleksandr Turchin said. “We build greenhouses with additional lighting in Belarus. We have an installed capacity of 15 MW for 7.5 hectares, so that we can crop products in winter.”
There is already a project of a future agro-town near the village of Gizil Kangarli, but the parties should not stop there, the Prime Minister is confident. It is necessary to consider the issue of availability of production facilities in the district. According to him, there is a need to calculate everything necessary for the sector to function effectively.
The Prime Minister was shown the plan of economic development of the area, as well as the planned residential development. Plans are in place to build one-family houses of various sizes in this place. In addition, together with Belarus, it is planned to restore electric power facilities, road and transportation network, housing, utilities and other infrastructure.
Photo: BELTA
