Belarus welcomes the EU Council's decision to abolish the autonomous quotas on imports of the Belarusian textiles and clothing marking it as a positive signal for the Belarus businessmen and the EU. The decision is in sync with the agreements between Belarus and the EU to improve bilateral relations, spokesman for the Belarusian Ministry of Foreign Affairs Dmitry Mironchik said.

They do not overestimate the economic effect from the abolition of the abovementioned quotas. However, the decision seems to be a positive signal for businessmen of Belarus and the EU encouraging European companies to cooperate with the companies of the Belarusian light industry, including in the field of investment, Dmitry Mironchik said.

The barriers in the export of Belarusian finished goods to the EU were in the way of European technologies and investment to the Belarusian light industry, Dmitry Mironchik said.

It was reported earlier that the Council of the European Union decided to repeal the autonomous quotas on imports of the Belarusian textiles on 7 February. Prior to that, the draft resolution was approved by the European Parliament and the Committee of Permanent Representatives (COROPER).

The spokesman of the Belarusian Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that on the whole, they would like to hail the recent progress in the trading relations between Belarus and the European Union. This is evidenced by the intensified bilateral dialogue and constructive negotiations on Belarus' accession to the World Trade Organization.