Source: The Herald – Breaking news.
Foreign Affairs and International Trade Minister Professor Amon Murwira (second from right) and his Belarusian counterpart Mr Maxim Ryzhenkov (second from left) sign documents at the mid-term review of the Zimbabwe-Belarus Joint Permanent commission on Cooperation closing ceremony in Harare yesterday. — Picture: Memory Mangombe. 
Farirai Machivenyika-Senior Reporter
THE Mid-Term Review of the Zimbabwe and Belarus Joint Permanent Commission on Cooperation ended in Harare yesterday, with the Eastern European country supporting Harare’s bid for a non-permanent seat on the United Nations Security Council for the period 2027 to 2028.
This is contained in a communique released after the meeting that was co-chaired by Foreign Affairs and International Trade Minister Professor Amon Murwira and his Belarusian counterpart, Mr Maxim Ryzhenkov, while that country’s Deputy Prime Minister Mr Viktor Karenkevich was the guest of honour.
“Both Parties affirmed their mutual support in the United Nations and other international organisations, including, inter alia, support of the bid of the Republic of Zimbabwe for a non-permanent seat on the United Nations Security Council for the period 2027-2028,” reads part of the communique. Zimbabwe’s bid has been endorsed by several countries that include Russia, India, Cuba and Sadc.
If it succeeds, the development will enable Zimbabwe to enhance its global standing and provide a platform to represent the interests of Sadc and African countries. The communique also says the two delegations engaged in comprehensive and constructive discussions, assessing progress in the implementation of joint commitments while identifying new avenues for enhanced bilateral cooperation.
“The MTR facilitated the convening of the Second Sitting of the Joint Working Group (JWG) in the field of agriculture, which reviewed progress in the implementation of agricultural cooperation initiatives and identified priority areas for further collaboration.
“Furthermore, the MTR acknowledged with satisfaction the robust and expanding bilateral cooperation across multiple sectors, including; agriculture, industrial cooperation, higher and tertiary education, health, disaster management and mining, among others.
“The MTR called for the enhanced implementation of Instruments of Cooperation that have already been signed as well as the speedy conclusion of the pending Instruments,” the communique reads.
Zimbabwe expressed deep gratitude and appreciation to Belarus’s President, Mr Alexander Lukashenko, for the humanitarian assistance extended to Harare, in response to the appeal by President Mnangagwa, following the El Nino-induced drought.
“The MTR underscored the importance of expediting the conclusion of all outstanding instruments of bilateral cooperation and reaffirmed its commitment to strengthen further the implementation of shared commitments through tangible projects that will complement the two countries’ national development efforts.
“In this regard, both parties welcomed the entry into force of the Agreement on the Avoidance of Double Taxation signed in 2023 between the Republic of Zimbabwe and the Republic of Belarus,” reads part of the communique.
The MTR recognised the importance of diplomatic engagement and facilitating official travel between the two countries and called upon the parties to finalise the draft Agreement on the Exemption of Visa Requirements for holders of diplomatic and service passports and to take measures to facilitate mutual travel of citizens.
“The MTR confirmed the decision by the Commission that Belarus will host the Second Session of the Joint Permanent Commission on Cooperation in 2026, in order to further follow up on the implementation of the agreements signed during the high-level visits and previous sessions of the JPCC, as well as exploring further areas of cooperation,” the communique reads.
In his closing remarks, Prof Murwira described the MTR as a success.
“This MTR has been more than just a routine check; it has been a decisive and results-driven exercise. We have rigorously monitored the progress of our joint projects and programmes, assessed performance with a critical eye, and drawn key lessons to refine our strategies moving forward.
“We have confronted challenges head-on, recalibrated our approaches where necessary, and reinforced our commitment to delivering meaningful and measurable outcomes. Dear Colleagues, now, the real work begins. Our words must translate into action, and our commitments into tangible results,” he said.
Mr Ryzhenkov said the close ties between the leaders of the two countries provided a platform for mutual cooperation.
“I would like to stress again that the very warm, truly sincere, friendly, even brotherly relations between our leaders, President Mnangagwa and President Lukashenko, President of the Republic of Belarus, created a good opportunity for all of us to develop the relations between our countries in any spheres we could even imagine.
“We could, based on this understanding among our leaders, we could provide our relations as far as even other countries which have a very long history of relations couldn’t reach. Because we are very friendly nations, we haven’t seen problems in our relations, we share the views of the international agenda,” he said.
COMMENTS
Goodness me ! What a TOTAL FARCE our country’s governance has become. Surely even ZANU Lunatics can read the true spirit of the leadership in Belarus. Most of Europe is cautious in the extreme of having ANY normal relationship with Lukashenko’s gangsters- but not good old Liberated Democracy Zimbabwe !