Belarus and Japan have announced their intention to develop interparliamentary and interregional co-operation – as stated by Chairman of the Standing Commission on International Affairs and National Security of the Council of the Republic Sergei Aleinik following a meeting with Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of Japan to Belarus Kazuhiro Kuno, BelTA reports
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As noted by Mr. Aleinik, the meeting was dedicated to discussing the development and deepening of bilateral relations between Belarus and Japan. “We have agreed to intensify our interparliamentary co-operation. There was once a friendship group in the Japanese Parliament, and we plan to resume its work. We have agreed to start with contacts between our parliaments on the platforms of international organisations such as the Inter-Parliamentary Union and the OSCE Parliamentary Assembly. Naturally, we have also paid attention to the issues of interregional co-operation. So far, only one sister-city agreement is operational between our countries, so we have agreed to consider concrete steps to develop Belarus-Japan interregional ties,” he said.
The meeting also focused on the prospects for the development of trade and economic liaisons, the assistance in the implementation of joint economic projects, the establishment of co-operation between chambers of commerce and industry, and the deepening of scientific and technical ties. The latter, as noted by Mr. Aleinik, already has its own history, but needs a boost.
“We have paid attention to the social and humanitarian sphere, and the issues that are of particular importance on our bilateral agenda. We greatly appreciate the aid that Japan has provided to our country to minimise the consequences of the Chernobyl disaster. The assistance was provided both through the Japanese government and a number of Japanese public organisations, and it totalled about $40 million. In addition, since 2004, Japan has launched the Grassroots programme aimed at strengthening the technological base of healthcare institutions in Belarus. This programme has been resumed since last year, and three projects to supply high-tech medical equipment have already been implemented. We greatly appreciate this co-operation and have agreed with the ambassador to further develop the humanitarian aspect of our bilateral relations,” Mr. Aleinik added.
The Grassroots grant assistance programme is among the ones implemented by the Japanese government abroad. It finances humanitarian projects proposed by organisations and selected through a competitive process. The programme has been implemented in Belarus since 2004, and it primarily aims to help people affected by the Chernobyl accident and its consequences. As part of the programme, medical equipment has been supplied to hospitals in the Chernobyl-affected regions, as well as to Belarus’ oncological and endocrinological medical institutions. Priority is given to projects related to the diagnosis and treatment of thyroid diseases. In addition, grant funds can be allocated to strengthen the material base of social protection organisations. The annual amount of financing allocated to Belarus until 2022 was about $200-400 thousand.
As part of the programme, a $72,000 grant contract was signed with the Senno central district hospital for the purchase of an endoscopic system. In addition, a grant contract was signed for the purchase of colonoscopy equipment for the Gomel regional cancer centre (worth $123.7 thousand) and for the purchase of medical equipment for the Stolin central district hospital ($65.7 thousand). Since 2004, sixty-three projects in Belarus have received a total of about $4.9 million of financing.