MFA: Belarus can make a serious contribution to ensuring food security in Mongolia

June 26, MINSK . Belarus can make a serious contribution to ensuring food security in many countries of the world and Mongolia in particular. This was stated by DIRECTOR of the Department of Foreign Economic Activity of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Belarus Andrei Prokopchuk on the sidelines of the Eurasian Economic Forum during the round table "EAEU - Mongolia", discussing the format of the temporary trade agreement between the EAEU and Mongolia, BELTA reports.

"I would like to note that, as with other EAEU countries , Mongolia has been and remains one of the key trading partners in the East Asian region for Belarus. Previously, more than 80% of Mongolia's trade turnover was with the Soviet Union," said Andrei Prokopchuk. "In my opinion, given the existing historical ties, common interests, and complementarity of our economies, the issue of a trade agreement has been brewing for a very long time."
The representative of the Belarusian Foreign Ministry noted that the format of a temporary agreement has proven its effectiveness in the example of Iran: "We were convinced of its advantages, importance, and necessity after a certain period of time, and about three years later we all began working together to sign a full-scale document."
According to Andrei Prokopchuk, in the case of Mongolia, the EAEU may take the same path. After signing the agreement and working together, it will be possible to look for options for signing a full-scale document. "It is important to say that the commodity scope of even the temporary agreement includes almost all goods traded between our countries. This means that we can really feel the effect of this document quite soon. The main thing is that all the necessary procedures after signing are followed in a short time," he emphasized.
Speaking about Belarus, Andrei Prokopchuk noted that the agreement turned out to be very beneficial for our country, because tariff concessions cover almost 92% of Belarus' exports to Mongolia. "According to our calculations, Mongolia's average weighted rate on goods exported by Belarus will decrease from 6% to 1%. This is a truly excellent result," he is confident.
As for the goods whose supplies to Mongolia may be increased, the representative of the Belarusian Foreign Ministry named agricultural and food products. Among them, dairy products can be singled out, including dry MILK , cheeses ,cottage cheese , yoghurts. The level of self-sufficiency of Belarus in food is more than 240%. This means that Belarus can make a serious contribution to ensuring food security of many countries of the world and Mongolia in particular.
"Our extensive experience, high competencies, advanced technologies, production discipline and strict control allow the Republic of Belarus to produce and supply high-quality dairy products. We are pleased to share our experience with our Mongolian colleagues," Andrei Prokopchuk emphasized. - Thus, in 2024 , agreements were reached on joint projects for the reconstruction of the existing and construction of a new dairy complex in Mongolia.
Among food products, confectionery and chocolate products, SUGAR , sparkling wines and baby food have high EXPORT potential . Another group of goods is mechanical engineering products . Also, the creation of a joint assembly production of Belarusian tractors is currently being worked out with the Mongolian side. Mongolian specialists have been trained in assembly technology. The supply of BELAZ quarry dump trucks is promising.
"These are the main product groups, but there is certainly untapped potential in a number of other areas of trade and economic cooperation. In the light industry, I would highlight carpets, underwear and hosiery. The supply of Belarusian medicines also has potential. At the same time, it should be noted that the Mongolian requirement to confirm the registration of drugs in five foreign countries significantly limits the range of supplies. Therefore, as one of the areas of our future work, I propose considering the possibility of simplifying this requirement for the member states of the union," Andrei Prokopchuk stated.