Linas Linkevičius: Lithuania To Strengthen Cooperation With Opposition Due To Events In Belarus

The Lithuanian Foreign Minister called yesterday's election unfair and undemocratic.

Lithuanian Foreign Minister Linas Linkevičius said that the presidential election in Belarus was not fair, and the civil society showed that it was ready for changes, delfi.lt reports.

“It is difficult to call the election fair, democratic, and free, we have to express regret about this,” the minister told BNS on Monday.

According to L. Linkevičius, due to the events in Belarus, Lithuania will pay even more attention to human rights issues, and strengthen cooperation with the opposition.

“The EU has warned that violence against peaceful demonstrators and journalists is unacceptable, and Belarus should look for ways to communicate with the civil society. Alas, we did not see this happening,” the minister added.

“In the future, we must pay even more attention to human rights and freedoms in Belarus, and cooperate with the opposition even more intensively. It is obvious that the civil society is already ready for changes, and one cannot ignore it, we must respect the opinion of the people,” L. Linkevičius said.

According to the minister, the response to the actions of the Belarusian authorities will be after collecting information about possible repressions.

“It is necessary to collect more information. Over a thousand detainees is an impressive indicator, and they must be released immediately. If Belarus returns to the topic of political prisoners, no doubt sanctions will be discussed again,” L. Linkevičius said.

The Minister also stressed that the sovereignty of Belarus is the national interest of Lithuania, and in the international arena and in bilateral relations, Lithuania will try to help preserve it.

“The sovereignty and independence of Belarus are our national interests. We will do everything that is possible both in the international arena and in bilateral relations to preserve it,” L. Linkevičius said.

The minister also stressed that close attention will continue to be paid to the Belarusian NPP. When electricity production starts, Lithuania will cancel the import of electricity from Belarus, and will actively raise security issues in all international organizations.