29 August 2006
Foreign Minister Martynov signs several agreements in South Africa

Belarusian Foreign Minister Sergei Martynov and South African officials signed agreements on the establishment of a bilateral committee on trade and economic cooperation, on cooperation in the spheres of arts and culture, as well as on visa-free travel for the holders of diplomatic and official passports.

The accords were inked during the Belarusian official's ongoing visit to South Africa, the Belarusian foreign ministry's press office said.

Mr. Martynov met with his South African counterpart, Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma, as well as Trade and Industry Minister Mandisi Mphalwa and the management of Johannesburg University on August 28.

The Belarusian and South African foreign ministers discussed the current state of and prospects for the expansion of bilateral political, economic, scientific and cultural cooperation, as well as steps to forge closer ties between the two countries within the United Nations, the Non-Alignment Movement and other international organizations.

While talking to reporters after the meeting, the Belarusian minister noted that his country, shunned by the United States and the European Union, wanted to create "a dense fabric" of ties with South Africa. "We are like minded on how the world should be run and how the United Nations system should be changed," South African news agencies quoted him as saying.

Mr. Martynov's meeting with the South African minister of trade and industry focused on ways of stepping up bilateral economic contacts.

The visit also yielded a memorandum of cooperation between Johannesburg University and Belarusian National Technical University.

The Belarusian minister is expected to head back to Belarus on August 30. //BelaPAN