Updated at 13:53,23-12-2024

Belarus spots signs of thaw in relations with US

Euroradio

There are signs of thaw in Belarus-US relations, according to the annual Foreign Policy Review released by the Belarusian MFA.

"The successful realisation of some projects and initiatives by both sides [Belarus and the USA] can be the sign of a thaw in the atmosphere of bilateral cooperation," BELTA quotes the document. A delegation of the U.S. Department of State visited Belarus in December 2013 – for the first time in two years. The bilateral trade exceeded $500 million last year.

The Belarusian MFA also noticed "certain positive changes in the normalisation and development of relations with the European Union." The EU is "one of the priority foreign economic and political partners for Belarus," the document says. That is why it is no surprise that we can see "some significant activation" of contacts with European structures and foreign political institutions of the EU member states as well as successful realisation of technical cooperation projects.

Negotiations on readmission and the visa regime simplification have started this year.

The positive changes in the relations with the EU and USA "mean that the dialogue can become constructive", the Belarusian MFA stated.