Diplomatic Briefing
Your exclusive news aggregator handpicked daily!Archive for Belarus
Newsline: Belarus summons Ukraine ambassador over stray missile
Belarus has protested to Ukraine’s ambassador after saying it had downed a Ukrainian S-300 air defence missile in a field. The Ukrainian ambassador was summoned to the foreign ministry in Minsk to receive a formal protest. “The Belarusian side views this incident as extremely serious,” Anatoly Glaz, a spokesman for the ministry, said. “We demanded that the Ukrainian side conduct a thorough investigation … [and] hold those responsible to account and take comprehensive measures to prevent the recurrence of such incidents in the future.” (https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2022/12/29/belarus-summons-ukraine-envoy-over-stray-air-defence-missile) The military commissar of Belarus’s southwestern region of Brest, Oleg Konovalov, played Thursday’s incident down in a video posted on social media by the state-run BelTA news agency, saying locals had “absolutely nothing to worry about”. Konovalov compared the incident to one in November, when an S-300 believed to have strayed after being fired by Ukrainian air defences landed on the territory of NATO-member Poland, triggering fears of an escalation that were rapidly defused.
Newsline: Belarus’ foreign policy to remain unchanged after top diplomat’s death
Belarus’ foreign policy course will not be changed after the death of Foreign Minister Vladimir Makei, regardless of who takes his office, Vladimir Zharikhin, deputy director of the Institute of CIS Countries, told TASS on Sunday. The expert argued that Makei “once used to be a kind of a leader of the pro-Western faction in [Belarusian President Alexander] Lukashenko’s team.” “He was pursuing a policy that was dictated by Lukashenko. So, I don’t think that there will be any cardinal changes in Belarus’ policy to other countries,” Zharikhin said. (https://tass.com/world/1542435) Vladimir Makei died on Saturday at the age of 64. He worked at the Council of Europe and headed the European Cooperation Department of the Belarusian Foreign Ministry. He was appointed foreign minister in August 2012.
Newsline: Belarusian foreign minister dies without official explanation
The Belarusian Foreign Minister, Vladimir Makei, has died mysteriously. According to Belarus-owned news agency Belta, Mr Makei “died suddenly” at the age of 64, having served in the position since 2012. (https://www.express.co.uk/news/world/1701892/Belarusian-foreign-minister-dead-state-media-Russia-Ukraine-war-latest-Lukashenko-Putin) The state media gave no official reason and refrained from disclosing details. The sudden death comes amid rising tensions between NATO and Belarus, as Russia continues to deploy their troops in the country. However, the president Alexander Lukashenko recently dismissed speculation that Belarus was about the join the war in Ukraine.
Newsline: Romania recalls its ambassador from Belarus
Romania is recalling its ambassador to Belarus in solidarity with Lithuania and Poland, Foreign Minister Bogdan Aurescu said, joining several other states amid continued tensions after Minsk’s disputed presidential election. “Belarus needs to understand that using diplomatic pressure on EU member states will not help dialogue and will not bring positive results.” (https://www.reuters.com/article/us-belarus-election-romania-diplomacy-idUSKBN26U0Z0) Belarus has accused its neighbours Poland and Lithuania of meddling in its affairs by hosting exiled opposition leaders and refusing to recognise Alexander Lukashenko’s victory in the Aug. 9 poll. Critics said the vote was rigged. Romania joins Germany, the Czech Republic, Estonia, Latvia, Bulgaria and Slovakia in recalling its envoy. “We decided to recall our ambassador in Belarus for consultations in solidarity with Lithuania and Poland,” Aurescu said on Twitter.
Newsline: UK recalls ambassador to Belarus amid unrest
The UK has temporarily recalled its ambassador from Belarus amid growing tensions over political unrest there. Authorities in Minsk have cracked down on protests against President Alexander Lukashenko, who claimed victory in disputed elections in August. The opposition says he must quit but he says they are Western “puppets” trying to overthrow him. Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab said the move was in solidarity with Poland and Lithuania – critics of Mr Lukashenko. (https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-54489442) On Friday, Belarus expelled 35 diplomats from those two neighbouring countries. Mr Raab condemned that as a “completely unjustified” decision, which, he said on Twitter, would “only isolate the Belarusian people” further.
Newsline: Bulgaria and Slovakia recalling ambassadors from Belarus
Bulgaria and Slovakia are recalling their ambassadors to Belarus for consultations in solidarity with Lithuania and Poland, their foreign ministers said on Thursday after meeting Belarus opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya in Bratislava. “Steps taken by Belarus authorities against other EU Member states are unacceptable. EU remains united in its support of people of Belarus,” Slovak Foreign Ministers Ivan Korcok tweeted. (https://www.reuters.com/article/us-belarus-election-bulgaria-diplomacy/bulgaria-recalls-its-ambassador-from-belarus-foreign-minister-idUSKBN26T2L6) Poland and Lithuania recalled their ambassadors on Tuesday to defuse regional tensions after Belarus demanded they cut staff at their embassy for their “destructive” actions. Four more EU nations, including Germany, did same on Wednesday, to show support for Poland and Lithuania.
Newsline: Ukraine summons Belarus diplomat over Crimea
Ukraine’s foreign ministry summoned a senior Belarusian diplomat over the participation of a representative of Crimea’s occupation administration in a Russia-Belarus regional forum, the ministry said. Kyiv’s relations with Moscow deteriorated in 2014 after Russia annexed the Crimea peninsula from Ukraine and backed pro-Russian separatists in Ukraine’s Donbass region. “Ukraine considers inadmissible such unfriendly steps by the Belarusian side, which call into question the affiliation to Ukraine of the Russian-occupied Crimea and Sevastopol,” the ministry said in a statement. (https://www.reuters.com/article/us-belarus-election-ukraine-diplomat/ukraine-summons-belarus-diplomat-over-crimea-idUSKBN26M6K4) The ministry said the Belarusian diplomat reassured Kyiv that Minsk’s official position in support of Ukraine’s territorial integrity had not been changed. Ukraine’s relations with another neighbour, Belarus, soured when Kyiv condemned the Aug. 9 presidential election in Belarus as neither free nor fair.
Newsline: Germany summons Belarus ambassador over detention of journalists
The ambassador of Belarus to Germany was summoned to the foreign ministry in Berlin after foreign journalists were detained in Minsk, a ministry spokesman said on Monday. (https://www.reuters.com/article/us-belarus-election-germany-diplomacy/germany-summons-belarus-ambassador-over-detention-of-journalists-idUSKBN25R1CR)
Newsline: Poland Summons Belarus Ambassador Over ‘Unfounded Accusations’
Poland said on Thursday it had summoned the Belarus ambassador to protest at “unfounded accusations” after Belarusian media said President Alexander Lukashenko had accused Warsaw of plotting to seize part of the country if its crisis worsened. “With regard to the repeated unfounded accusations from Belarus leaders towards Poland, the … Belarus ambassador (was) summoned to the (Ministry of Foreign Affairs) today at 1500,” Deputy Foreign Minister Marcin Przydacz said on Twitter. (https://www.usnews.com/news/world/articles/2020-08-27/poland-summons-belarus-ambassador-over-unfounded-accusations) Lukashenko has accused Poland of planning to take over the Grodno region bordering Poland and Lithuania if Belarus falls apart, Belarus’s state news agency Belta reported. Belta on Thursday quoted Lukashenko as saying he had dispatched some armed forces to the western border with Poland. “You see these statements saying that if Belarus falls apart, Grodno Oblast will become part of Poland. They are already saying it openly, they are dreaming about it. They will not succeed, I know it for sure,” Belta quoted him as saying. Lukashenko has also accused the U.S.-led NATO alliance, to which Poland and Lithuania belong, of building up forces near the border with Belarus.
Newsline: Lithuanian diplomats summon Belarusian ambassador to protest border violation
On Sunday, when 50 000 people formed the Freedom Way human chain in Lithuania from Vilnius to the Belarusian border, a Belarusian military helicopter has violated the border, the Lithuanian Foreign Ministry has announced. Lithuanian diplomats wrote in a press release, that on Monday, August 24, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Lithuania summoned the Ambassador of Belarus to Lithuania Valery Baranovsky and handed him a protest note regarding a violation of the state border of Lithuania. (https://bnn-news.com/lithuanian-diplomats-summon-belarusian-ambassador-of-violation-of-border-during-freedom-way-216360) The Belarusian Mi-24 helicopter flew into Lithuania’s territory near Medininkai on 23 August at 18.50 p.m. Belarus is urged to explain this incident and to ensure that such violations do not happen again, the press release reads.
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