CIS

Home page

CIS

Belarus bans return of EU ambassadors in retaliation for sanctions

15 March 2012 19:55 (UTC +04:00)

Baku-APA. Belarus would not allow European Union (EU) ambassadors to return to Minsk if the bloc keeps on threatening the country with new sanctions, said the Foreign Ministry on Thursday, APA reports quoting Xinhua.

"What return of European ambassadors can be discussed today if the EU itself keeps on threatening with the introduction of new sanctions on March 23?" asked Foreign Ministry press chief Maria Vanshina.

The EU expanded on Feb. 28 the list of Belarusian officials subject to visa and economic sanctions in response to "the continued incarceration of political prisoners and crackdown on political activists, journalists and civil society representatives."

New sanctions, adopted by EU foreign ministers, included travel restrictions on 21 judges and senior police officers who "should be responsible for serious violations of human rights or the repression of civil society and democratic opposition."

The Belarusian Foreign Ministry recalled its permanent representative to the EU and ambassador to Poland for consultations in response, after which the EU and Poland recalled their ambassadors in retaliation.

To express solidarity, all EU member states agreed to withdraw their ambassadors from Minsk.

The sanctions against Belarus were condemned by Belarus, Kazakhstan and Russia. In their joint statement, the three countries, which formed a Customs Union in 2010, urged the West to promote equitable and respectful dialogues among the parties.