Belarus response: approves an asymmetric list of sanctions against the Baltic states



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“We also maintained inter-institutional coordination, and yesterday we prepared proposals – and they have already been approved – for the application of asymmetric sanctions to the respective personalities of Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia,” Makey said after speaking with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in Moscow.

He noted that these were people “who had actually tried diligently to interfere in the internal affairs of the Belarusian state, issued relevant and unacceptable political statements and made concrete proposals of financial support to opponents of the government.”

“This is completely unacceptable to us, we interpret it as interference in the internal affairs of our state,” said the head of Belarusian diplomacy. He did not name specific surnames.

He said that if other countries imposed sanctions on Belarus, Minsk would “also make appropriate decisions” in response.

The Baltic states this week issued sanctions against Belarusian President Aliaksandr Lukashenko and 29 other members of the regime, held responsible for electoral manipulation and violence against peaceful protesters. They have been banned from entering Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia for five years.

The European Union is also drawing up a list of sanctions. To the knowledge of the BNS, there are now 17 people on the coordinated list, but it does not include Mr. Lukashenko. EU sanctions would not only ban these people from entering the Community, but would also freeze their assets.

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