India & Belarus will strengthen bilateral relationship: Mahajan

Minsk (Belarus): Lok Sabha Speaker Sumitra Mahajan, who is leading an Indian Parliamentary goodwill delegation to Belarus, called on Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko on Tuesday.

At the meeting, both the leaders discussed issues of mutual concern and expressed firm commitment to strengthening already warm and friendly relations.

Reiterating that India and Belarus are time-tested friends, Mahajan said, "The good feelings between the two countries need to be supported by an enhancement in commercial and economic cooperation."

"Prime Minister Narendra Modi' use of the term "security" at the SCO summit implies not merely territorial security but also security in other areas including economy," Mahajan said, adding that the Indian government is well aware of the fact that defence cooperation with Russia has always included Belarus and its production facilities in the background.

"We are keen on furthering this relationship by establishing joint ventures in the fields of mutual interest and benefit. The Belarusian technology for not just SMART transportation but also SMART water, electricity, sewage disposal and green buildings would be very welcome," the Lok Sabha Speaker said.

On the occasion, Lukashenko emphasised the need to give a firm direction to the India-Belarus bilateral relations so that they may evolve in the right manner in the future.