Belarus demands that Poland slash staff at Hrodna consulate

February 17, BPN. The Belarusian foreign ministry says it has summoned Polish Charge d’Affaires Krzysztof Ożanna to inform him “in a civilized manner” about a response to Warsaw’s “inhuman unilateral decision” to block traffic at the Bierastavica-Bobrowniki border crossing.

According to the ministry’s press office, the diplomat was informed about changes in the rules of movement of Polish lorries and tractor trucks across the border with Belarus.

“They will now be able to enter and leave Belarus through any freight checkpoint, but only on the Belarusian-Polish section of the border,” the foreign ministry said.

In addition, Poland is obliged to reduce the staff of the Consulate General in Hrodna “to match the staff in Belarus’ Consulate General in Białystok.”

Also, the Belarusian authorities “do not see the point in further keeping the Polish Border Service liaison officer in their territory.”

“We gave them a chance, but instead of building bridges and assistance in solving problematic issues, including for Polish carriers, their activity was actually directed in the opposite direction,” it said.

Last week, Warsaw closed the major crossing until further notice, citing security interests.

This came after a Belarusian court sentenced a reporter of Polish origin, Andrzej Poczobut (Andrej Pačobut), to eight years’ imprisonment. The Polish Sejm called the sentence “the culmination of the Belarusian authorities’ repression against the Polish minority in Belarus that has been ongoing since early 2021.”