Ukraine’s envoy says Łukašenka did not explain hostility to Ukraine

April 2, BPN. Alaksandr Łukašenka’s annual address on March 31 did not explain why Belarus supported Russia’s war against Ukraine and how it benefited from this support, the Ukrainian ambassador in Minsk, Ihor Kyzym, wrote on Facebook.

“What has Ukraine and its people done to Belarusians and the Belarusian leadership, who for some reason thought they knew ‘what’s best’ for the Ukrainians and supported Russia?” he wondered.

Ukraine did not impose economic sanctions on Belarus prior to the Russian full-scale invasion in February 2022, Kyzym said. In 2021, trade between Belarus and Ukraine rose to $6.3 billion, with a 40-percent year on year rise recorded in the first two months of 2022, the diplomat noted.

Ukraine adopted the first sanctions package against Belarus only in November 2022 for helping Russian troops attack Ukraine, he noted. 

Belarus lost “the premium Ukrainian market worth $5 billion of Belarusian exports” because of its support of Russia’s war, Kyzym stressed. It also lost an opportunity to host and mediate the peace talks, he added.