{"id":175240,"date":"2026-02-11T19:51:03","date_gmt":"2026-02-11T16:51:03","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/175240\/"},"modified":"2026-03-09T20:10:49","modified_gmt":"2026-03-09T20:10:49","slug":"lithuania-firm-on-sanctions-against-belarus-fm-says","status":"publish","type":"articles","link":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/175240\/","title":{"rendered":"Lithuania firm on sanctions against Belarus, FM says"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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February 11, Pozirk.<\/em> <\/strong>Discussions about Lithuania\u2019s policy on Belarus do not mean that it is being disputed or urgently needs to be changed, Lithuanian Foreign Minister K\u0119stutis Budrys told Lrytas<\/em> on February 11, commenting on remarks by a member of the ruling coalition about the possible resumption of a dialogue with Minsk, according to LRT.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI think it is being wrongly speculated that if we are discussing something, this means that we are calling into doubt the current policy and automatically assuming its immediate reconsideration,\u201d Budrys was quoted as saying. \u201cNo, it is necessary to check whether what we are doing is really right.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mindaugas Sinkevi\u010dius, chairman of the Social Democratic Party of Lithuania, earlier said that a meeting at the level of deputy foreign ministers of Lithuania and Belarus was not \u201can absolutely taboo,\u201d and that Lithuania should respond to actions by its partners \u2013 the European Union and the United States, LRT<\/em> reported. He warned, however, against discussing political dialogue with Minsk before the EU has extended its sanctions against Belarus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In this context, Budrys reportedly voiced support for the discussions about Lithuania\u2019s sanctions policy and simultaneously played up the role of sanctions as \u201cone of the most efficient economic and political tools.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIf someone believes that sanctions do not work, let us discuss \u2013 perhaps a wrong area has been chosen or they are not being implemented, this is also part of the problem,\u201d Budrys said. \u201cThe circumvention of sanctions is a big subject. The entire situation regarding our carriers has also exposed this, and here we probably have more than one gray area.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Budrys cautioned against dismissing sanctions as inefficient until the most has been made of them. \u201cSo far we have not exhausted the potential of the sanctions policy against either Russia or Belarus,\u201d he said, adding that both America and Europe have more measures to apply. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Budrys stressed that Lithuania has not shifted on the original causes of sanctions against Belarus and he therefore sees no reason to lift them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cSanctions were imposed [on Belarus] for violating human rights, for facilitating the aggression against Ukraine, for helping Russia commit war crimes, including the abduction and indoctrination of children,\u201d he said. \u201cUntil this changes, there are no grounds for talking about modifying or softening the sanctions. On the contrary, Lithuania has boosted its sanctions regarding Belarus.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Lrytas<\/em> recalled that in mid-December Aleksandar \u0141uka\u0161enka and John Coale, US special envoy to Belarus, negotiated the release of a large group of political prisoners in exchange for the removal of US sanctions on potash from Belarus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Political analysts suggested that Washington might next try to pressure Lithuania into lifting its ban on the carriage of Belarusian-made fertilizer via the Klaipeda seaport.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Lithuania put the ban into place in February 2022, linking it to US sanctions and \u201cnational security.\u201d In December 2025, Belarus\u2019 potash giant Bie\u0142aru\u015bkalij filed a $12.09-billion compensation lawsuit against Lithuania. The EU subsequently imposed its own restrictive measures on Belarusian potash and is due to consider their extension later this month.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The European Union will \u201cvery likely\u201d extend its sanctions on Belarusian potash fertilizers after February 28, ruling out any discussions on resuming transit, Budrys told \u017dini\u0173 Radijas<\/em> on January 22.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The official responded to a remark by Lithuanian MEP Vytenis Povilas Andriukaitis, who suggested resuming fertilizer transit via Lithuania in exchange for the possibility of transporting Ukrainian cargoes to the port of Klaip\u0117da through Belarus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe context is very important here \u2013 my immediate question would be when and under what conditions,\u201d LRT<\/em> quoted Budrys as saying. \u201cNow the Ukrainian-Belarusian border is sealed completely. . . so we are probably talking about the conditions after the peace agreement and when there are no sanctions.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cFor now, this is not possible, at least from a legal point of view, because EU sanctions remain in force, and discussions on their extension are currently underway,\u201d he added.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Earlier this month, Lithuanian President Gitanas Naus\u0117da said his country is firmly opposed to resuming the transit of Belarusian potash fertilizers. The politician ruled out allowing the transit even if the US deploys an additional military force in the country, or for generating additional profit to boost defenses, citing a value-based approach to politics.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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