Lithuanian foreign minister says Brussels seeks to harmonize sanctions on Russia, Belarus

January 23, BPN. Brussels seeks to harmonize sanctions against Russia and Belarus, Lithuanian Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis told reporters on January 23, ahead of the meeting of the EU Foreign Affairs Council.

His remarks, disseminated by the ELTA news agency, were quoted by Delfi in Russian.

“Lithuania supports this process. I think it is right,” he said. “We can see certain trends where sanctions can be bypassed using some exceptions that are still applicable to Belarus. Harmonizing sanctions would actually close the roads for goods delivered through Belarus to Russia.”

One day earlier, Polish radio station RMF FM reported, quoting its sources, that the European Commission began discussions with EU ambassadors on imposing new sanctions on Belarus. Several options are on the table, from individual sectoral sanctions to their synchronization with sanctions against the Kremlin.

It has been reported that Germany is opposed to synchronizing sanctions on Moscow and Minsk, because, in its view, as long as Belarus has not directly entered the war, a distinction should be made between the aggressor and its ally.

Over the past few years, democratic nations have imposed multiple restrictions on Belarus over human rights violations. Sanctions have been imposed for alleged vote rigging in the 2020 presidential election, a brutal crackdown on protesters, the forced landing of a Ryanair flight, a migration crisis on the EU border, and support of Russia’s war in Ukraine.