EC President von der Leyen: There should be no loopholes in sanctions against Belarus regime

The leaders of the EU, of the EU member states and of the Eastern Partnership (EaP) countries met for the sixth Eastern Partnership summit in Brussels.Charles Michel, President of the European Council, chaired the meeting. President Michel and Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, represented the EU.

According to Ursula von der Leyen, the EU has shared 13 million vaccine doses with Eastern partners, and more will come.

“The EU Commission signed a €35 million agreement with the Polish development bank, to step up the delivery of vaccines to Eastern Partners. We will deliver vaccines to Belarus people too,” she said.

As the Belarusian authorities suspended their participation in the eastern partnership, there was an empty chair at the EaP Summit. The EC President expressed hope that that chair would ‘soon be filled by a democratically elected Belarusian leader’. All Eastern partners unanimously condemn Alyaksandr Lukashenka’s behaviour, she stressed.

During Wednesday’s press conference. Belsat TV journalist Alina Koushyk asked Ursula von der Leyen whether Europe was ready to eliminate the loopholes in the sanctions imposed on the Lukashenka regime.

“There should be no loopholes in sanctions, we are trying to remove them. We are working [on it]. Sanctions should work. In the situation with Belarus, we have seen how effectively we can work if the EU acts in a quick and coordinated manner. We can achieve a lot in such case. We introduced immediate sanctions when there was a common position on Belarus, it changed the situation, and thousands of migrants returned home. Our joint sanctions do work,” she answered.

Charles Michel also made mention of Belarus in his speech:

“We miss one country not present here today. There is an empty chair for Belarus as a symbolic place. A few days ago, together with High Representative Josep Borrell I met with representatives of Belarus democratic opposition. I heard their personal struggle and saw their courage, first-hand.We are united in our support for the Belarusian people and their desire for a democratic future.”

In its joint statement, the EU regrets the decision of the Belarusian authorities to suspend their participation in the Eastern Partnership and look forward to resuming cooperation with the Belarusian authorities as soon as necessary conditions for peaceful democratic transition are in place to build on a joint agenda based on common values and shared interests. In the meantime, the EU continues engagement with and support for the Belarus citizens, civil society and independent media.

“The comprehensive plan of economic support for a democratic Belarus, of up to EUR 3 billion, reflects the EU’s commitment to support the democratic choice of the Belarusian people. Reiterating previous statements, the EU condemns the instrumentalisation of migrants and refugees by the Belarusian authorities and indeed all incidents of instrumentalisation of migrants for political purposes,” the statement reads.

belsat.eu