Cichanoŭskaja calls on EU to slap new sanctions on Łukašenka regime

November 14, BPN. The war in Ukraine is not just a conflict between Moscow and Kyiv. Dictators Vladimir Putin and Alaksandr Łukašenka, “are waging the war against European civilization,” Belarusian opposition leader Śviatłana Cichanoŭskaja told the EU Foreign Affairs Council in Brussels on November 14.

BPN received the text of the speech from Cichanoŭskaja’s press office.

The politician said that “it is the duty of every nation on the continent, including Belarusians, to help Ukraine defend itself.” She added that “now is the time to support the efforts of Belarusians to defend independence of their nation.”

Cichanoŭskaja called on the EU to drop its contacts with the “illegitimate regime” and to strengthen the “policy of non-recognition.” “This must cover illegal concessions to Russia after the rigged 2020 elections,” she said.

The opposition leader said that “trade in political prisoners is unacceptable and only the Belarusian people can negotiate with the regime to reach a sustainable solution.”

She called on the Council members to “support new sectoral sanctions on the regime and close existing loopholes,” as well as to “work out a global sanctions package following the decision of the International Labor Organization to invoke Article 33 against the regime.”

Cichanoŭskaja asked for support in international organizations to restart the OSCE’s Moscow Mechanism and to resume assessment of the regime’s crimes. She also called for raising the issue of “the regime’s role in the war and threat to Belarus independence” at the UN Security Council.