Mahmutlar has enjoyed a friendly relationship with Zhodino and agreed to become formal sister cities this year.

Zhodzina, also called Zhodino, is a city in Belarus, located in the Minsk voblast, 50 km to east from Minsk.

The city covers an area of 19 km² and has a population of 61172 (2001).

It is one of the newest cities in the country; its construction began in 1963.

The BelAZ automobile factory (The Belarusian Automobile Plant) is the largest employer in the city, and with about 11,000 workers, about one-sixth of the urban population work there. Its 250 tonne lorries are world famous.