Prospects for the development of foreign economic cooperation between Russia and Belarus

Foreign economic activity is an area of economic activity that covers production, technology and science, as well as export-import operations and capital movement. Foreign economic cooperation is important for the formation of the economy of any state. Thanks to export and import, countries can sell products abroad, or purchase the necessary goods and resources, attract and place investments abroad. In the context of sanctions pressure from the collective West, which affects both Russia and the Republic of Belarus, the issue of further strengthening the development of foreign economic cooperation between the two countries has become even more urgent. The purpose of this work is to analyze foreign economic cooperation between Russia and the Republic of Belarus, as well as to find ways to develop it. The study analyzed the indicators of trade and investment cooperation between the two countries for the period 2019-2023. Conclusions were made that external events affecting these states pushed them to strengthen bilateral ties. There is a growing trend in trade turnover between the countries, its share in the total volume of foreign trade of each country, as well as mutual foreign direct investment. Strengthening cooperation between the Republic of Belarus and Russia requires intensifying interregional ties, eliminating trade barriers, developing investment infrastructure and applying advanced international practices in foreign economic activity.