Belarus sees the need to create basic infrastructure in Murmansk for Belarusian cargo traffic — Belarus’ Deputy Minister of Transport
A working group of the Ministry of Transport and Communications of the Republic of Belarus is currently in Murmansk on a business visit. An organizational meeting has been held to discuss possible options of cooperation, including the construction of a marine terminal for handling of potash fertilizers, the Murmansk Region Government said in the Telegram channel.
Olga Kuznetsova, Deputy Governor of the Murmansk Region, confirmed the interest in developing the Murmansk Transport Hub (MTU) together with Belarusian partners.
Natalya Alexandrovich, Deputy Minister of Transport and Communications of the Republic of Belarus, emphasized that Belarus sees the need to create a basic maritime infrastructure in Murmansk for Belarusian cargo traffic.
When speaking at the meeting with representatives of foreign and Belarusian media on 16 February, Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko said that Belarus wants to build a port in Murmansk. “We want to build a port in Murmansk and along the Northern Sea Route deliver our goods. Such are our plans, and we began to realize them. But this is only the beginning," said the Belarusian leader.
According to earlier reports of IAA PortNews, the Republic of Belarus had announced its plans to transport up to 850 thousand tonnes of cargo via the Astrakhan Region by 2024 and to build a terminal in the Murmansk Region able to handle 5-7 million tonnes of Belarus’ potash per year.
When holding a meeting to discuss the creation of port facilities to export Belarusian products in summer 2022, Aleksandr Lukashenko emphasized the need “to make the maximum use of the Russian ports” to ship Belarus’ goods.