India and Belarus to hold talks in Delhi

The dates of a visit to Belarus by Indian President Abdul Kalam in the autumn and a return visit to India by Belarussian President Alexander Lukashenko will be determined during talks in Delhi today and tomorrow, according to Andrei Savykh, the press secretary of the Belarussian Foreign Ministry.

Savykh said that the two parties would be discussing a range of bilateral relations issues, including preparations for signing a number of agreements between the two countries: a treaty on legal assistance, an extradition treaty, a military cooperation agreement and an agreement on collaboration between their agricultural ministries.

The two sides will also discuss developing trade and economic relations, scientific cooperation, and holding an Indian Science and Technology Day in Belarus in the autumn.

According to the Belarussian Foreign Ministry, trade between Belarus and India was worth USD 71.1 million. Belarus exported USD 50.3 million of goods to India and imported USD 20.7 million worth of products.