EU sanctions for Russia’s war should apply to Belarus – Lithuania

May 10, BPN. The European Union’s sanctions for the war in Ukraine “should apply to Belarus without any exceptions,” Lithuanian President Gitanas Nausėda has said in a meeting with Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez in Madrid.

Nausėda’s press office quoted him as saying that pressure on the aggressors must be increased through “an effective EU sanctions policy.”

He also spoke at a virtual summit on creating a special tribunal for the crime of aggression, initiated by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky.

Poland and the Baltic countries have consistently opposed the relaxation of sanctions against Alaksandr Łukašenka’s and Vladimir Putin’s regimes.

Lithuania hosts the headquarters of Belarusian opposition leader Śviatłana Cichanoŭskaja and gave refuge to many regime critics.

Russia has repeatedly struck Ukraine from Belarusian territory, where it has an increased military presence. It used Belarus as a launchpad for its February 2022 offensive on Kyiv. At the same time, Minsk says that Belarusian troops are not directly involved in hostilities in Ukraine.