Opinion: Belarus found alternative markets for exporting products after imposition of sanctions
Leonid Zayats, the Chairman of the Standing Commission on Regional Policy and Local Self-Government of the Council of the Republic of the National Assembly of Belarus, the President’s authorised representatives in the Mogilev Region, told the ONT TV channel whether Belarus had lost agricultural exports since 2020 – after the imposition of sanctions – and where we had found alternative markets
Leonid Zayats said that Belarus had not lost anything, “In 2020, our exports totalled $5.7bn, in 2023 – $7.4bn, in 2022 – $8.3bn. Last year, we did not lose in volume, only in price due to the exchange rate of the Russian Rouble against the US Dollar. Over the first five months of this year, we have increased the sales of meat by 33 thousand tonnes, those of meat products by 18 percent compared to the same period last year, and the sales of milk and dairy products grew by 38 percent (by 664 thousand tonnes) compared to a year earlier.”
Leonid Zayats also noted that today our products go to Poland, Lithuania, Germany, the Netherlands and Italy, “Export supplies have already increased by 30-50 percent compared to last year. It would seem that today these are unfriendly countries towards Belarus, who have turned away from our country. However, the business is working, and ordinary people in Europe feel the need for our products. Therefore, perhaps, the will of the leaders of European states does not combine in any way with the interests of ordinary citizens. People are trying to be friends with Belarus. The same refers to the US: our export supplies to this country expanded by over 30 percent compared to the figures recorded in 2023.”
The expert added that among the new sales markets, alongside Africa, there is an evident dynamic with other countries, “We have gained a foothold in the Eurasian Economic Union, Central Asia, and China. We’re liaising with the PRC in order to create a joint venture for processing our milk powder in this country. We’re adapting to the Chinese market so that we can supply products with an extended sales period there,” Leonid Zayats summed up.
