The new "relative" of Bobruisk, town Gulbene, is the smallest of among all twins, it’s population is only about 10 thousand people. However, it is the first "EU" city, which managed to legitimize the family relations.

While the friendship between Bobruisk and the Bulgarian Sevlievo is about 12 years old, Bulgaria itself became a member of the European Union last year only.

The major enterprise in Gulbene is a dealer centre for sales of agricultural equipment. For reference, steel wheeled tractors " Belarus" production was recently launched in Bobruisk. Obviously, the twinning, occurred based on the economic considerations and it was legally fixed by relevant treaties.

In the meantime, partnership agreements also link Bobruisk with Vladimir ( Russia), Puhovo ( Slovakia), one of the suburbs of Moscow Sokolniki and the area Anneny-Noah in Moldova. A year ago, another agreement was concluded with Murom, Vladimir region of Russia.

Common inhabitants of Bobruisk do not see the difference between twinning and partnership:

“Certainly, both forms of cooperation exist so that the city authorities could legally travel to visit each other at state cost”, believes a vendor Anna Igorevna.

There are certain reasons behind this way of thinking. Last year, for example, the leadership of Bobruysk traveled to Bulgaria to talk about the future performances of Bobruisk artists at the festival in Sevlievo.

The former mayor of Bobruysk Mikhail Bondarenko is also skeptical regarding the economic cooperation with Sevlievo.

Bobruysk twin relationship with Dneprodzerzhinsk does not go far beyond friendship between local theaters and traveling to each other to visit theater festivals.

Partners Bobruisk and Sokolniki have exchanged "courtyards", i.e. children's playgrounds.

Bobruisk businesses: bakery, confectionery and the Knitting Factory took part in the "Fair Weekend" in 2007 in the Twin Citiy Naro-Fominsk. In the same year in Naro-Fominsk appeared Bobruyskaya street.

Nadezhda Lisovskaya

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