The European Union is ready to “amnesty” Lukashenko for four months for “good behavior”
On Monday, October 12, the European Union will decide whether to suspend sanctions against 140 Belarusian individuals and companies. The decision will depend on the results of the October 11 elections and "Lukashenko's behavior," according to the Russian newspaper Nasha Versiya.
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If the European Union decides to change its anger to mercy, sanctions against Belarusians, including the country's President Alexander Lukashenko, will not be completely lifted, but they will be frozen until the end of February.
In addition, as explained in diplomatic circles, the European Union needs to make a reciprocal gesture in connection with the pardon of six well-known Belarusian political prisoners who were released in August. Among those pardoned was, in particular, Nikolai Statkevich, who ran for president in 2010.
Another formal reason for giving the Belarusian leader a break between sanctions is his recent statement that he did not agree to the deployment of a Russian military base on the country’s territory, as well as the role of Minsk in negotiations on a peaceful resolution of the conflict in Ukraine.
A pause in the sanctions will mean that Belarusian citizens blacklisted by the EU will be able to visit European countries and make financial transactions there, and will have access to European funding and 25 “sanctioned” companies. The exception will be representatives of the military-industrial complex - for example, the Beltechexport enterprise, as well as four employees of the Belarusian special services, whose names are currently not disclosed. According to the European Union, these people are related to the disappearance of several Belarusian oppositionists.
Alexander Lukashenko himself, whom Western media call “the last dictator of Europe,” on October 6, after speaking at a session of the UN General Assembly and meeting with a number of heads of state in New York, said that he sees emerging positivity in his country’s relations with the West. According to him, Belarus is not making “any turn, any U-turn” - the country is following its own course. “We do not pretend to anything and ask you to respect our choice,” the President of Belarus emphasized.
Speaking about the sanctions imposed by the West, Lukashenko cited Cuba as an example, and explained that “it’s the same with Belarus. We survived, we endured... We created in the center of Europe, if not a super-rich, but a worthy country.”
The European Union is ready to “amnesty” Lukashenko for four months for “good behavior.”