EU foreign policy chief links lifting of sanctions to democratic elections in Belarus

December 11, Pozirk. Belarus will not be represented at the European Union’s foreign ministers meeting with their Eastern Partnership counterparts on December 11, top EU diplomat Josep Borrel told Belarusian opposition leader Śviatłana Cichanoŭskaja yesterday.

The EU does “not recognize those who steal elections and repress their population. That’s what [Alaksandar] Łukašenka has done, he stole elections and represses the Belarusian people,” he stressed at their meeting in Brussels.

“We are working closely and are very much aware of the increasingly difficult situation in the country,” the European External Action Service’s (EEAS) press office quoted him as saying. “I am sure that the Ministers will be very keen to hear from you, dear Śviatłana, your assessment of the situation.”

The EU will keep sanctioning Belarus’ authorities and supporting the pro-democracy forces and civil society until Belarus holds democratic elections of its authorities that would represent all Belarusians, he stressed.

Borrel also noted that additional aid of €30 million to the Belarusian civil society and opposition took the total amount of EU assistance to €140 million since 2020.