Fruitful Cooperation and Exchanges Between Chongqing and Belarus

By Liu Dingrui/The World and Chongqing Photo/Tang Anbing

On September 15th,2022,Xi Jinping,President of the People’s Republic of China,and Alexander Lukashenko,President of the Republic of Belarus met on the sidelines of the 22ndmeeting of the Council of Heads of State of the Shanghai Cooperation Organization (SCO) in Samarkand,Uzbekistan.The two heads of state had an in-depth exchange of views on China-Belarus relations as well as international and regional issues of common concern,reached a broad consensus,and issued aJoint Statement on Establishing All-Weather Comprehensive Strategic Partnership.According to theStatement,both sides speak highly of the China-Belarus “Sub-National Cooperation Year” in 2021-2022,and they will encourage the opening of sub-regional representative offices in two countries based on the principle of reciprocity.The two sides expect further economic and trade cooperation between Belarus and Chongqing,Qingdao,Tianjin,and other cities in China.

In recent years,Chongqing and Belarus have witnessed frequent high-level visits,fast-growing business cooperation,various cultural and people-to-people exchanges,and fruitful sub-national interactions.In January 2021,the Consulate-General of Belarus in Chongqing was officially opened,boosting the cooperation between the two sides in economy,trade,investment,culture,and people-to-people exchanges greatly.

中华人民共和国主席习近平同白俄罗斯共和国总统亚历山大·卢卡申科于9月15日在乌兹别克斯坦撒马尔罕出席上海合作组织成员国元首理事会第二十二次会议期间举行会晤，两国元首就中白关系及共同关心的国际和地区问题深入交换意见，达成广泛共识，并发表了《中华人民共和国和白俄罗斯共和国关于建立全天候全面战略伙伴关系的联合声明》。其中提到，双方积极评价2021——2022年举办的中国和白俄罗斯“地方合作年”活动，将鼓励两国地方根据对等原则互设代表处，双方欢迎白俄罗斯同中国重庆、青岛、天津等地深入开展经贸合作。

Official Opening of the Consulate-General of Belarus on January 28th,20212021年1月28日，白俄罗斯驻重庆总领事馆正式开馆。

China (Chongqing)-Belarus (Minsk) Business Forum Held in 20192019年，中国重庆市——白俄罗斯明斯克州商务论坛在渝举行。

Located in the west of the East European Plain,Belarus is a major country along the Belt and Road and an important partner of the China-Europe Railway Express (Chengdu/Chongqing).The cooperation opportunities between the two sides can be attributed to Belarus’s geographic advantages,a solid industry and agriculture foundation,advanced machinery manufacturing,metallurgical processing,machine tools,electronics,and laser technology as well as developed agriculture and animal husbandry.

High-level visits from both sides are frequent.The Ministry of Industry,Ministry of Sports and Tourism,and Ministry of Agriculture and Food of the Republic of Belarus,Embassy of the Republic of Belarus in China and Minsk Region have organized high-level delegations to visit Chongqing for exchanges and cooperation.Delegations of the Chongqing Municipal Government have also visited Belarus many times for better cooperation and have achieved deliverable results.

Economic and trade cooperation is growing rapidly.Chongqing and Belarus are strategic partners in the construction of China-Europe Railway Express (Chengdu-Chongqing).2011 saw the opening of the direct China-Europe Railway Express (YUXINOU) from Chongqing to Duisburg,Germany,via Belarus.Currently,the direct line from Chongqing to Belarus has been operated in a normalized way.In November 2018,the Chongqing-Belarus Economic and Trade Cooperation Matchmaking Conference and the Signing Ceremony of Cooperation Projects were held in Chongqing.From January to August 2022,the total imports and exports between Chongqing and Belarus increased by 48.5% year-on-year.

People-to-people exchanges are rich and colorful.In 2018,when theChina-Belarus Year of Tourism Promotion Activities was held in Chongqing,activities such as the Belarusian Arts Festival “Kupalinka”cultural performance and Chongqing Residents National Painting Exhibition received great enthusiasm from both sides.In 2022,the Photo Exhibition of the 30thAnniversary of the China-Belarus Diplomatic Relations,and Chongqing-Minsk TV Week were held in Chongqing,showing that cooperation between the two sides in film production,art exchanges,foreign language teaching,etc.is steadily advancing.

近年来，重庆与白俄罗斯高层互访频繁，经贸合作增长迅速，人文交流丰富多彩，地方交往成果丰硕。2021年1月，白俄罗斯驻重庆总领事馆正式开馆，为双方在经贸、投资及人文领域的交往合作带来更多助力。

白俄罗斯位于东欧平原西部，是“一带一路”沿线重要国家，中欧班列（成渝）重要合作伙伴。其区位优势明显，工农业基础较好，机械制造业、冶金加工业、机床、电子及激光技术比较先进，农业和畜牧业较发达，为两地合作创造了许多机遇。

双方高层互访频繁。白俄罗斯工业部、体育旅游部、农业食品部、驻华大使馆和明斯克州等先后组建高级别代表团访问重庆，商洽合作。重庆市政府代表团多次访问白俄罗斯推动合作，取得积极成效。

经贸合作增长迅速。重庆与白俄罗斯互为中欧班列（成渝）项目建设战略合作伙伴。2011年由重庆始发直达德国杜伊斯堡的中欧班列（渝新欧）开通，途经白俄罗斯。目前，重庆——白俄罗斯直达班列已实现常态化开行。2018年11月，重庆——白俄罗斯经贸合作对接洽谈会及合作项目签约在渝举行。2022年1——8月，重庆与白俄罗斯进出口总额同比增长48.5%。

Sub-national exchanges are fruitful.Chongqing and Minsk Region,Wanzhou District and Kapyl District of Minsk Region have established sister city relations,and Yubei District and Minsk District of Minsk Region have signed a Memorandum of Sister Relationship.The two sister cities have been helping each other in the joint fight against the pandemic and providing mutual assistance in battling COVID-19.They put the concept of a Global Community of Health for All into practice,further advancing friendly relations to a higher level.

人文交流丰富多彩。2018白俄罗斯中国旅游年宣传推广活动在重庆举行，白俄罗斯艺术节“库帕林卡”文艺演出、重庆居民国画展等活动，受到市民热情关注。2022年，中白建交30周年图片展、重庆——明斯克电视周在重庆举行，双方电影制作、艺术交流、外语教学等方面的合作正稳步推进。

地方交往成果丰硕。重庆市与明斯克州、万州区与明斯克州科佩尔区先后建立友城关系、渝北区与明斯克州明斯克区签订了备忘录。友城双方在共同抗击新冠肺炎疫情过程中守望相助，开展了物资互助等抗疫协作，以实际行动践行人类卫生健康共同体理念，友好关系向更深层次、更高水平发展。

“Kupalinka” National Art Troupe of the Belarusian State Philharmonic Visiting Chongqing During the 2018 Belarusian Cultural Festival2018年白俄罗斯文化节期间，白俄罗斯国家音乐厅“库帕林卡”民族艺术团访渝演出。

On February 21st,2020,Chongqing donated the second batch of medical supplies to Belarus.2020年2月21日，重庆向白俄罗斯捐赠医疗物资（第二批）。