2010-03-26 01:49

Chinese Vice President Xi Jinping (L) and Belarussian President Alexander Lukashenko (R) meet for talks in Minsk, March 24, 2010. [Agencies]

MINSK: Belarus could secure Chinese investment of more than $10 billion in a series of projects spanning several industrial sectors, including cars, electricity and sugar, a Belarussian government spokesman said on Thursday.

"These are absolutely realistic projects that should be realised in the next three to four years," government spokesman Alexander Timoshenko said.

He was speaking during a visit to Minsk by Chinese Vice President Xi Jinping.

Timoshenko said the total amount of Chinese investment into the Belarussian economy could reach $15.7 billion, including a $5.7 billion credit line agreed in December.

Asked whether that meant potential deals worth $10 billion had been agreed during Xi's visit, he said: "Yes."

Timoshenko said Belarus and China aimed to cooperate in 89 projects, including construction of an automobile plant and a sugar refinery and the reconstruction of several electricity plants, as well as the creation of a Chinatown in Minsk.