Lukashenko does not want to expel any Western diplomats
In response to new sanctions from the EU, among others, the Belarusian ruler Alexander Lukashenko ordered the development of countermeasures. The Belarusian government should deal with this issue “fundamentally, without daunting and clearly,” said Lukashenko on Friday at a meeting on the country’s economic development, according to the state-run news agency Belta.
Belarus is not under the pressure of sanctions for the first time and has already set up a crisis team, said Lukashenko. At the same time, he reassured western diplomats in Belarus who, according to his statements, had recently packed suitcases and expected to be deported. “We will not kick anyone out and we will act in a civilized manner within the framework of international legal norms,” he said.
The EU put new sanctions into force on Thursday evening, which are officially directed against those involved in the smuggling of migrants. You will meet, among others, the state-owned Belarusian airline Belavia. Brussels accuses Belarus of deliberately bringing people into the country from crisis areas and then pushing them to the borders with Poland, Lithuania and Latvia. Thousands of people have been waiting there for weeks and are hoping to continue their journey to Europe.
The USA, Canada and Great Britain also decided on new punitive measures on Thursday. The Belarusian Foreign Ministry immediately announced that it would take “tough, asymmetrical, but appropriate measures” against Europe in return. The EU had already imposed sanctions in the past over the controversial Belarusian presidential election last year.
(WHAT)