English

Foreign ministry spokesman says that EU should lift all sanctions against Belarus

The shortening of the list of Belarusian individuals and economic entities subject to EU travel bans and asset freezes is a positive development, but, in general, the decision to extend the sanctions is counterproductive, Andrey Savinykh, spokesman for the Belarusian foreign ministry, told BelaPAN.

"The removal of individuals and entities from the list is a positive trend," Mr. Savinhykh said. "However, in general, the extension of the sanctions is counterproductive. This policy has no future and should be abandoned altogether. It is impossible to develop partnership in the interests of citizens of Belarus and EU countries on this basis."

On October 29, the Council of the European Union removed 13 Belarusian individuals and five companies from the EU's blacklist and included two individuals in it, extending the restrictive measures against the other individuals and economic entities on the list until October 31, 2014.

As a result, 232 individuals, including Alyaksandr Lukashenka, are currently subject to travel bans and all of them plus 25 entities are subject to asset freezes.