About 60 regions of Russia and all regions of Belarus – more than 4.5 thousand people – participated in the Forum. An extremely rich three-day economic and cultural program. The result – the signing of a hundred agreements and contracts totaling about 110 billion Russian rubles. At the same time, the Forum has once again proved that it remains not only the most important platform for signing contracts and demonstrating industrial and agricultural potential, but also a platform for building cultural and spiritual ties between the peoples of the two countries.
Within the framework of the Forum, nine sections worked, where information technology, a unified industrial and agricultural policy, issues of humanitarian cooperation, public diplomacy, volunteering, tourism potential and a unified legal system of the State of the Union were discussed. The sections brought together more than 700 participants: senators, scientists, representatives of relevant ministries and departments, municipal authorities, as well as from the worlds of business, science and culture. About 150 people gave presentations. Within the framework of the sections alone, more than 60 cooperation agreements have been signed between authorities at all levels, scientific, educational, cultural institutions and public bodies.
Cooperation between the regions of our two countries is the most important component of trade union construction
As a result, the State of the Union Science and Technology Development Strategy was adopted, which is expected to be signed no later than the fall. The most important event of the Forum was the plenary session, during which the results of the decade were summarized and ways to further develop cooperation were outlined. The presidents of Russia and Belarus spoke highly of interregional cooperation in their video messages. The head of the Russian state noted that the cooperation of the regions, which is developing from year to year, is at the heart of the truly allied relations between Russia and Belarus, the processes of integration within the framework of the state of the Union. According to Vladimir Putin, practically all the constituent entities of the Russian Federation and the regions of Belarus have mutually beneficial multifaceted contacts with each other. He also spoke highly of joint regional initiatives aimed at increasing cooperation in science, education and culture, preserving common historical memory and combating the falsification of history.
Alexander Lukashenko stressed that the bases for cooperation are solid. At the same time, today it is necessary to increase the competitiveness of the two countries by deepening industrial cooperation, to solve the problems of specialization, import substitution in microelectronics and other high-tech industries, to extend interregional exchanges as much as possible and develop transport and logistics corridors. , and find additional engines for integration processes. The President of Belarus called on the Forum of Regions to go beyond the State of the Union, to intensify cooperation with the countries of the CIS, SCO, BRICS, ASEAN and all those who are willing to work together.
As noted by the Chairperson of the Federation Council, Valentina Matvienko, the Anniversary Forum was held against the backdrop of large-scale and decisive events for our countries and for the entire planet. Despite the resistance of the collective West, the world is moving inexorably towards multipolarity, towards a more just and egalitarian world order. The President of the Council of the Republic of the National Assembly of the Republic of Belarus, Natalya Kochanova, noted that over the past 10 years the Forum has become a powerful link for Belarus and Russia in the economy and in the human dimension, and this is embodied in the intensification of contacts, the implementation of numerous successful projects and the constant expansion of areas of cooperation. By the way, the next XI Forum of Regions of Russia and Belarus will be held in the Vitebsk region.
State Secretary of the Union State Dmitry Mezentsev, summarizing the results of the forum, told reporters that cooperation between the regions of Russia and Belarus is the most important element in building the ‘union. “The meaningful agenda, the cultural program, the exhibition and congress component of the Forum, the discussion that took place during the plenary session, that serious and meaningful conversation that we had with the heads of the regions – all of this is in the treasury, on a global scale, of the system of interstate relations between Belarus and Russia, in support of the format of the State of the Union”, underlined the Secretary of State.
From the history of the Forums
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p class=””>First forum: Minsk, June 5-6, 2014.
19 regions of Russia took part in it, as well as all regions of Belarus – more than 300 people. They discussed issues related to the development of agro-industrial complexes of Belarus and Russia and ensuring the food security of the Union state.
Second forum: Sochi, 17-18 September 2015.
60 regions of Russia and all regions of Belarus took part. More than 400 attendees. For the first time, the presidents of Belarus and Russia participated in the forum. The Union State industrial policy was discussed. Twenty interregional agreements have been signed, more than 60 commercial contracts have been signed.
Third forum: Minsk, 7-8 June 2016.
Delegations arrived from almost 40 Russian regions, as well as from all regions of Belarus – about a thousand participants. The Heads of the two States took part in the work of the Forum. We discussed socio-economic policy in the Union State. As a result, about 40 agreements were signed, 150 contracts were concluded.
Fourth Forum: Moscow, 29-30 June 2017.
Heads of 30 regions of Russia arrived, all heads of regions of Belarus. There are about 800 people in total. Issues of development of integration of regions of Russia and Belarus in the field of high technologies, innovations and information society were on the agenda. As a result, contracts were concluded for a total of 450 million US dollars, 77 agreements of various levels were signed.
Fifth forum: Mogilev, 10-12 October 2018.
About four thousand participants arrived. We discussed how to develop regional cooperation. About 70 agreements were signed, contracts worth half a billion dollars were concluded.
Sixth forum: Saint-Petersburg, 16-18 July 2019.
Delegations from 70 constituent entities of Russia and all regions of Belarus have arrived. More than a thousand people participated in the forum. They discussed the problems of forming a common cultural and humanitarian space of the peoples of Belarus and Russia. The VII Russian-Belarusian Youth Forum “Youth for the State of the Union” was held on the sidelines of the forum. More than $550 million in commercial contracts have been signed. More than 80 new cooperation agreements between regions and organisations.
Seventh Forum: Minsk, 28-29 September 2020.
Due to the coronavirus pandemic, it was held by videoconference. The leaders of the two countries addressed the participants. The issues of preserving historical memory as the basis for the development of socio-economic and spiritual ties between the peoples of Belarus and Russia were discussed. More than 70 cooperation agreements and contracts have been signed for a record amount of more than 700 million dollars.
Eighth Forum: Moscow, 29 June – 1 July 2021.
The main events, due to the restrictions linked to the coronavirus pandemic, also took place by videoconference. The presidents of Russia and Belarus addressed the participants of the forum. We discussed scientific and technical cooperation between the two countries in the era of digitalization. The portfolio of mutually beneficial proposals is impressive – contracts have been signed for over $800 million.
Ninth Forum: Grodno, June 30 – July 1, 2022.
This time, the participants met in person. More than 50 delegations from Belarus and Russia participated in the Forum. We discussed the role of interregional cooperation in deepening Union State integration processes. The total amount of the contracts concluded amounts to a record one billion dollars.
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