[ad_1]
“Due to the undoubted destructive activities of the aforementioned countries, it is proposed to reduce the number of diplomats in the diplomatic missions of the respective countries in Belarus by the ninth day of October,” the representative said.
As A. Glazas explained, 14 diplomats must remain instead of 25 in the Lithuanian Embassy and 18 will remain instead of 50 in Poland.
Ambassadors are called for consultation
The Belarusian Foreign Ministry also since October 5. reminds Belarusian ambassadors in Lithuania and Poland in Minsk for consultations.
“The ambassadors of Lithuania and Poland in Belarus are invited to follow this example,” said Glaz.
According to A. Glas, this step had to be taken “exclusively because of the extremely destructive role played by the Lithuanian and Polish leaders in relation to Belarus.”
Sanctions announced
Belarus announced retaliatory sanctions against the European Union on Friday. This is stated in a statement issued by the Belarusian Foreign Ministry on Friday.
“Belarus is always against confrontation in word and deed. We are in favor of dialogue and mutual understanding. But as a sovereign state, we will respond resolutely, albeit regrettably, to hostile actions to defend our national interests,” says the state agency of news from Belarus, BelTA, citing the document.
Following the EU’s announcement of sanctions against some Belarusian officials, Minsk will apply a list of sanctions in retaliation from Friday. “In accordance with established civilized diplomatic practice, we will not publish it,” the Belarusian Foreign Ministry noted.
According to the agency, if the EU turns the “wheel” further, the consequences could be even more dire. For example, Belarus can withdraw from joint programs and projects, review the level of diplomatic representation, and even consider whether diplomatic relations are appropriate.
“The EU is threatening to review its relations with Belarus. It will be its decision. Belarus, for its part, is also ready to review relations and will respond appropriately to any hostile action. Attempts to impose on the Belarusians some representatives approved by abroad, some “government exile” projects etc. doomed to fail. The fate of such structures is sad: even before the beginning, they are on the fringes of the historical process, “the Belarusian Foreign Ministry said in a statement.
The European Union on Friday issued sanctions against some 40 Belarusian officials responsible for electoral fraud and human rights abuses. The President of the European Council, Charles Michel, announced this at a press conference on the results of the first day of the EU summit.
For his part, French President Emmanuel Macron emphasized that the EU was not imposing sanctions on Aliaksandr Lukashenko, as this would hamper Brussels’ demand for dialogue with the Belarusian opposition through the OSCE and the release of political prisoners.
EU countries made the political decision to impose sanctions on Minsk in August, but could not reconcile the blacklist for a month and a half because it was blocked by Cyprus, which demanded restrictive measures against Turkey for its actions in the Mediterranean. So, at this EU summit, Cyprus landed in Brussels, promising sanctions against Ankara if it did not end its provocations before the end of the year.
In Belarus on August 9. Presidential elections were held, the results of which are considered rigged. Its winner was Lukashenko, the longtime leader of Belarus.
As soon as the first results of the vote were announced, mass protests began in Minsk and other Belarusian cities, which escalated into clashes with the militia. Thousands of people were arrested and many protesters were injured.
Does not rule out the possibility of withdrawing from joint programs and projects
The Belarusian ministry has not ruled out the possibility that the country will withdraw from joint programs and projects if the EU “sanctions flyer” continues to spin.
“A further rotation of the EU ‘sanctions flyer’ could have even more serious consequences, such as the withdrawal of Belarus from joint programs and projects, a review of the level and modality of diplomatic representation until a decision is made on the maintenance of convenience in diplomatic relations, “the ministry said.
He called on the EU not to promise Belarusians a “golden mountain in the next life” and to redouble its efforts here and now to tackle common challenges such as illegal migration, international crime and terrorism, the infectious disease pandemic and its socioeconomic consequences.
“We call on the European Union to open its borders to all Belarusians instead of building new visa fences, not just their” separate “ones, declares the Foreign Ministry.
“The EU threatens to reconsider its relations with Belarus. It will be their choice. For their part, the Belarusians are also willing to reconsider their relations in a similar way and will continue to respond appropriately to any hostile action,” the statement emphasized.
The Belarusian Foreign Ministry also predicts that attempts to “impose externally approved representatives on Belarusians, projects of some kind of” government in exile “” will fail.
“The fate of such structures is sad: before they start, they are on the fringes of the historical process,” the ministry said.
The EU has agreed sanctions
EU leaders, after overcoming Cypriot objections, agreed on Friday to impose sanctions on Belarus over the political crisis.
This decision paves the way for the issuance of travel bans and assets freezes to some 40 members of the Alexander Lukashenko regime, responsible for the manipulation of the presidential elections and the repression of protesters.
The EU countries had already decided in principle to impose sanctions on the Minsk regime, but were blocked by Cyprus, which called for similar measures against Turkey, with which the country disagrees on the exploration of natural gas in the eastern Mediterranean.
In a statement at the summit that was drawn up after more than six hours of discussion, the leaders of the 27 countries warned Ankara that sanctions could be announced “immediately” if it continued to explore gas in Cypriot waters.
That statement was enough for Cyprus to lift its veto on individual sanctions for the protracted crisis in Belarus.
The President of the European Council, Charles Michel, has confirmed that Mr Lukashenko himself is not on the list of persons to be sanctioned.
“No, Lukashenko is not on the current list, but of course we will follow the situation and events,” he said after a meeting with EU leaders. Michelis.
The authoritarian president is on previously announced sanctions lists for Minsk in the UK and Canada.
For almost two months there have been unprecedented protests in Belarus over the presidential elections on August 9, which were declared won by Lukashenko, who has ruled the country since 1994. The opposition and Western countries consider these elections to be rigged.
It is strictly forbidden to use the information published by DELFI on other websites, in the media or elsewhere, or to distribute our material in any way without consent, and if consent has been obtained, it is necessary to cite DELFI as the source.
[ad_2]
