• Both nations agree to strengthen partnership in trade, defence, agriculture
• Islamabad to send 150,000 skilled workers to Belarus

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan and Belarus on Friday agreed to strengthen bilateral cooperation across various sectors, including agriculture, food security, industry, trade and defence.

During a meeting between Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko, both sides signed several memorandums of understanding (MoUs) and agreed to send 150,000 skilled Pakistani youth to Belarus to support its nation-building efforts. A comprehensive strategy for this initiative will be developed soon.

Both sides also agreed to collaborate and expand cooperation in the manufacturing of agricultural machinery, electric buses, and in the area of food security.

Furthermore, the two leaders reiterated their resolve to boost defence and business-to-business cooperation.

The two sides discussed matters relating to trade, investment and regional issues and expressed satisfaction over the recent progress on all aspects of the bilateral relations.

PM Shehbaz said a significant progress in various sectors was made after the eighth meeting of Pakistan-Belarus Joint Ministerial Commission held last year and visit of Pakistan’s inter-ministerial delegation to Belarus.

He termed contribution of 150,000 skilled workers as a “gift” for the people of Pakistan and expressed deep gratitude for the opportunity, highlighting that this initiative will not only benefit the Belarusian economy but also provide meaningful livelihoods to the Pakistani youth.

“I assure you that the skilled Pakistani workforce, duly certified both by international standards and through national accreditation, will serve as a valuable asset to Belarus,” the premier said while speaking at a joint press conference with President Lukashenko.

Recalling the visit of the Belarusian president to Pakistan in 2015-16, the prime minister said the trip had laid the foundation of long journey of friendship and cooperation in areas of mutual interests.

The prime minister expressed the government’s interest in benefiting from the experience of Belarus in various areas, especially agriculture.

“Pakistan is an agrarian country and 65 per cent population reside in rural areas. We need your expertise to increase our per-acre yield by utilising the modern methodologies in the sector,” he said, adding that Pakistan needed to have joint ventures between with Belarusian companies.

“The companies from both Pakistan and Belarus will have a win-win situation in this regard,” he added.

The prime minister also highlighted the Belarusian expertise in manufacturing mining equipment, saying that Pakistan had mineral deposits worth trillions of dollars and both countries could become great partners in this sector.

Bilateral collaboration

On the occasion, President Lukashenko emphasised the importance his country placed on fostering strong ties with Pakistan. He said Belarus attached great significance to its relations with Pakistan and looked forward to deepening cooperation on multiple fronts.

Mr Lukashenko highlighted the potential for expanding bilateral collaboration in diverse sectors, including trade, industry, agriculture and technology.

He expressed confidence that the high-level engagement would pave the way for long-term strategic partnership and mutual growth. He noted that PM Shehbaz’s visit would serve as a catalyst for opening new avenues of cooperation between the two nations. He stressed the need for exploring untapped areas of partnership and building upon the existing friendly relations.

Meanwhile, PM Shehbaz in his social media post on X highlighted his meeting with the Belarusian president and said: “We reviewed the entire spectrum of our bilateral cooperation, including political, trade, investment, and people-to-people contacts.”

Presidential dinner

President Lukashenko on Thursday hosted a dinner at his farmhouse in honour of PML-N President Nawaz Sharif and PM Shehbaz.

Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz and Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar also attended the dinner.

President Lukashenko expressed extraordinary warmth for Shehbaz Sharif and Nawaz Sharif. The prime minister thanked President Lukashenko for the warm welcome and hospitality.

Later, Chairperson of the Council of the Republic of the National Assembly of Belarus Natalya Kochanova and Chairman of the House of Representatives of the National Assembly Igor Sergeenko called on PM Shehbaz.

Both sides desired to extend parliamentary ties between the two countries. They stressed the need for exchange of parliamentarians’ delegations of the two sides.

Published in Dawn, April 12th, 2025