On the High-level conference on the topic of “Integration of integrations”

On May 20, 2021, a High-level online conference “Harnessing inter-regional integration for SDGs” co-organized by the Permanent Missions of Belarus and Barbados in Geneva in partnership with the Secretariat of the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD), was held in Geneva.

The Conference was opened by the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Belarus Vladimir Makei, the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Foreign Trade of Barbados Jerome Walcott and the Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Russian Federation Sergey Lavrov.

The Conference was attended by high-level representatives of the states – presidencies of regional integration associations from around the world, the heads of the secretariats of the EAEU, EFTA, MERCOSUR, ASEAN, Andean Community and CARICOM, as well as international organizations, such as WTO, WIPO, UNCTAD, UN Office in Geneva, UNECE and other UN regional commissions.

The Belarusian minister stressed in his statement that where regional integration develops successfully, the space for political fragmentation and tension significantly decreases. Amid the complex geopolitical situation in the world and growing regional tensions as well as application of wider neo-protectionist and unilateral coercive measures, we urgently need a universal unifying agenda more than ever.

V.Makei said about the need to involve regional integration structures and their Member-states in the development of collective solutions in response to the common trans-border challenges.

The participants of the event discussed the prospects for the development of cooperation between regional interstate unions in order to ensure the sustainable development of their Member-states, exchanged experience in integration building, expressed support for the creation of a permanent dialogue platform for regular meetings of experts and politicians in this format.

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