MINSK: Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif arrived in Belarus on Thursday for a two-day official visit at the invitation of President Aleksandr Lukashenko.
The premier was received at the Minsk airport by Belarusian Prime Minister Alexander Turchin along with senior officials from the Pakistan embassy. He is accompanied by a high-level delegation including Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar, Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz, Minister for Information and Broadcasting Attaullah Tarar, and Special Assistant to the Prime Minister Tariq Fatemi.
According to the Foreign Office, the visit will span April 10–11 and includes talks between PM Shehbaz and President Lukashenko to review progress in areas of mutual interest.
“Over the past six months, a series of high-level bilateral engagements — including the 8th Session of the Joint Ministerial Commission (JMC) in February 2025 and a subsequent visit by a high-powered mixed ministerial delegation to Belarus in April 2025 — have laid the groundwork for a productive visit,” the FO said in a statement.
During the visit, several agreements are expected to be signed to strengthen cooperation in diverse fields.
The Foreign Office noted that the visit underscores the strong and ongoing partnership between Pakistan and Belarus.
In November 2024, both countries signed a three-year Roadmap for Comprehensive Cooperation for 2025–27. The wide-ranging agreement was among 15 Memorandums of Understanding (MoUs) and deals inked during a previous meeting between PM Shehbaz and President Lukashenko, which also included a delegation-level dialogue.
The signed MoUs span multiple sectors including e-commerce, science and technology, health services, vocational education, halal trade, accreditation, and auditing. Agreements were also made on cooperation in intelligence sharing on money laundering and terrorism financing, customs statistics, international road transport, disaster management, and environmental and climate change initiatives.
An extradition treaty was also signed to strengthen the legal framework between the two countries.
A joint communique issued at the end of the previous round of talks said the agreements were “expected to open new prospects for the continued development of bilateral relations based on the principles of mutually beneficial friendship.”
