VILNIUS - Gradually, Belarus has become somewhat of a new business frontier for Lithuanians. However, most businessmen, although actively investing and exploring market opportunities in the neighboring country, are reluctant to speak about it publicly, the business daily Verslo Zinios reported on Oct. 5.
For instance, the Lithu-anian-owned ice-cream producer Morozprodukt, often cited as an example of a successful investment project in Belarus, refuses to reveal the name of its owner.
According to reports, associates of the Lithuanian wholesaler Eugesta control Belarus' ice-cream industry, but company managers decline to comment on this.
Mantinga, which produces frozen bread and other bakery products for the Baltic country, also has a business operating under the name of Morozopro-dukt in Belarus. But company CEO Klemensas Agentas said the branch was not related to the ice-cream business, calling it "a coincidence of names."
Audrius Vidzys, president of the Lithuanian Brewers Association, reportedly began investing in Belarus' beer industry several years ago. However, he both strongly denies this and insists that Lithuanian brewers are only "exploring" the neighboring market.
Meanwhile, the Belarusian business newspaper Belarus-kaya Gazeta reported in mid-September that Rechitsapivo, a Belarusian-Lithuanian joint venture, had installed new brewing and bottling equipment and that Lithuanian businessmen had invested around $5 million in the brewery.
The story quoted Vidzys as being a Rechitsapivo representative and said the Lithuanians had managed to keep silent about their investments in the country for four years.
What's more, a Lithuanian-run retail chain is also successfully operating in Belarus, with its owners dodging the limelight.
Other than for tax purposes, Lithuanian businessmen could be reluctant to divulge their interests in Belarus due to the stigma of investing in a country that has become synonymous with human rights abuses and is increasingly referred to as a pariah state.
Danas Vaitkevicius, second secretary at the Lithuanian Embassy in Belarus, said that Lithuanian investments in the neighboring country include retail trade, textile and food industries. Lithuanians have also started looking into the information technology, construction and international cargo delivery sectors.
