Russia, Belarus to approve six integration projects in petrochemistry, machinery, agriculture by 2018 - Russian Ambassador
MINSK. June 9 (Interfax) - Minsk and Moscow will decide on their integration projects by the end of 2017, Russian Ambassador to Belarus Alexander Surikov said.
"We are talking about six [integration projects], three from each side. I watch speeches closely: the work of our industry ministries has begun, while our agriculture ministries still have work to do," Surikov told a press conference in Minsk on Friday.
Belarus sees opportunity in implementing machinery and petrochemistry projects, he said. "We [Russia] also have something coming up in the agricultural industry," Surikov said.
"I think we will, by the end of this year, decide what projects these are, what that is. It is obvious that we need to integrate our economies deeper if we want sustainable EAEU [Eurasian Economic Union] development," Surikov said.
"We'll have a picture by the end of the year. I am not ruling out that the five proposals that existed earlier will also be considered," the ambassador said.
Earlier Belarusian Deputy Prime Minister Vladimir Semashko said that Moscow and Minsk would each offer three integration projects by the end of 2017. The relevant agreement was laid down in a roadmap signed with Russian Deputy Prime Minister Arkady Dvorkovich in Moscow in April, Semashko said.
Project implementation mechanisms will vary: "an asset swap, purchase of a certain amount of stock, an additional issue, and simply buyout," Semashko said.