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UK ambassador urges Minsk to create favorable conditions for investors

The Belarusian government must take efforts to create conditions that would attract British investors, UK Ambassador Rosemary Thomas told reporters in Minsk on June 14, as quoted by BelaPAN.

The diplomat said that UK investors could be wooed by opportunities in the high-technology and software sectors.

"Great Britain is one of the main importers of Belarusian-made goods, but energy resources account for a considerable part of our trade volume. And since the future of this sector looks a bit uncertain now, we must think together how to diversify the basis of our mutual trade," she said.

Trade between Belarus and the UK topped $1 billion in 2009, the ambassador said.

Speaking about political relations between the two countries, Ms. Thomas said that Britain welcomed "Belarus' involvement in the Eastern Partnership, as well as the Belarusian authorities' intention to hold a public hearing on the possibility of a moratorium on the death penalty."

Britain expects Belarus to make big progress in the sphere of political liberalization, she said, adding that the UK was concerned about the prison sentences given to Vawkavysk businessman Mikalay Awtukhovich and his associate Uladzimir Asipenka, two new death sentences and pressure on the independent media and sociologist Aleh Manayev.

"Belarus has a unique geographical position between Russia and the EU. We are confident that Belarus has the needed potential to make an important contribution to long-term stability in the region," Ms. Thomas said.