Belarus’ top diplomat visiting Algeria to boost ties

April 15, Pozirk. Belarusian Foreign Minister Siarhiej Alejnik discussed trade and economic ties with his Algerian counterpart Ahmed Attaf during his visit to Algiers on April 14.

The meeting came days after the Belarusian ruler took officials to task for failure to boost ties with Asian, African and South American countries. He said that sales in those markets plunged to less than 20 percent of the pre-sanction year of 2021.

The Belarusian-Algerian joint economic and trade commission will start working in 2024 with the next round of bilateral political consultations to take place by April 2025, Alejnik announced.

The diplomats also talked about launching a direct air passenger service between both countries and opening embassies in Minsk and Algiers to boost ties.

Belarus and Algeria established diplomatic relations in 1995.

In 2021, trade between the two countries amounted to $1.01 million. It mainly consisted of Belarusian exports of potash fertilizers, stationery and textiles, according to the Belarusian embassy to Egypt, responsible for relations with Algeria. Statistics for 2022 and 2023 are not publicly available.  

Last week, the Belarusian leader met with Uzbekistan’s visiting Foreign Minister Bakhtiyor Saidov to encourage the two countries to set up joint ventures.

Read more: Alejnik’s United Nations meetings show Asia, Africa are priority foreign policy regions