Alexander Lukashenko and Xi Jinping Meet in Tianjin

President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko and the Chairman of China, Xi Jinping met in Tianjin, where the Shanghai Cooperation Organization summit is taking place on August 31st and September 1st, reports BELTA.

At the outset of their meeting, Alexander Lukashenko highlighted the staggering pace of China's development. "You truly are remarkable — the colossal progress of the People's Republic of China! Organization, discipline, everything in its proper place — no one wastes time or efforts. People are engaged in concrete, meaningful work. I see in this a great success of your nation and a testament to the leadership and colleagues in China," emphasized the Belarusian leader.

Belarus is increasingly drawing from China's experience and learning across numerous sectors — from the military-industrial complex to the production of consumer goods.

Lukashenko also expressed his belief in adopting China's political model. "Once upon a time, the Soviet Union and China built a very close friendship and shared a model, which you have preserved and continue to operate under today in the organization and governance of the People's Republic of China. Unfortunately, we have lost much in this regard," he remarked.

"I congratulate you on steering your country wisely and carefully, without revolutions or upheavals, toward the goals you have set," Lukashenko added.

Meanwhile, Xi Jinping noted that China-Belarus relations of comprehensive and all-weather strategic partnership continue to thrive at a high level. "In June, we met in Beijing, and decided to further deepen our multifaceted bilateral cooperation. Building on the fruitful results achieved during the years of collaboration in science, technology, and innovation, I propose we focus on developing new productive capacities that serve the interests of both our nations," stated the Chinese leader.

He also reaffirmed China's readiness to work alongside Belarusian partners to realize genuine multilateralism aimed at peace, development, cooperation, and mutual benefit worldwide.

As previously reported, during this official visit, special attention is scheduled to be given to the development of Belarusian-Chinese cooperation. In 2022, the bilateral relationship was elevated to the level of an all-weather, all-encompassing strategic partnership. "We see this clearly reflected in our cooperation, particularly in economic spheres. As for politics, God willing, our economic and financial relations will someday reach the level of political partnership," the Belarusian leader said in an interview with China Media Group ahead of the visit.

Lukashenko shared that Belarus is learning from and adopting many aspects of China's experience: "I am a firm believer that we should not merely observe China from afar; we must take certain elements and integrate them into our reality."

A significant driver of the dynamic growth in cooperation is the personal friendship between the leaders of the two countries. The President emphasized that Belarus and China face no issues or disagreements. "If we need to coordinate a matter, make joint decisions, or support each other, a simple phone call from Beijing to Minsk or vice versa suffices. We resolve everything within minutes."

This is sixteenth Alexander Lukashenko's visit to China. The previous one took place in early June of this year, culminating in a friendly, family-style meeting with President Xi Jinping. The format was quite unique. Lukashenko described the technological modernization of certain industries in Belarus as one of the main areas of cooperation with China: "This is Xi Jinping's idea, which we know is aimed at a scientific and technological revolution in engineering. I am very grateful to my long-standing friend and colleague for involving Belarus in this process, which has gained tremendous momentum in China."