(BelTA) – An agreement to set up the Belarusian-Swiss Business Council was signed in the Belarusian Chamber of Commerce and Industry on 19 June, BelTA learned.

After signing the document, the parties discussed the format of the new organization, its membership, and also the issues of cooperation between Belarusian and Swiss business community. Co-chairmen of the Belarusian-Swiss Business Council are Vladimir Korol, Director General of OAO Electric Transport, and Peter Spuhler, CEO and owner of Stadler Rail Group.

Answering the journalists' questions, Peter Spuhler said that meetings will be held on request. He suggested that at the initial stage meetings will be more frequent. "During the initial meetings we will examine which markets and areas to focus on," he said.

Peter Spuhler drew attention to the fact that the business council will provide a platform for experts who have great expertise in many sectors of the economy.

When talking about Stadler Rail Group’s plans for other industries in addition to the railway transport, Peter Spuhler stressed that the company is looking for possibilities of cooperation in mechanical engineering by analogy with the project which is already running in Belarus.

Proposal for the establishment of the Belarusian-Swiss Business Council was voiced by Peter Spuhler at the meeting with Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko in April this year, during which the parties discussed possibilities of expanding cooperation in the field of railway construction between Belarus and the Swiss company.