Andrea Rigoni: I would like to learn whether Minsk had taken steps to forge closer ties with the Council of Europe

Andrea Rigoni, the special rapporteur on Belarus in the Council of Europe Parliamentary Assembly (PACE), met with Vadzim Papow, chairman of the House of Representatives, in Minsk on October 17.

The PACE representative had arrived in the Belarusian capital the day before.

Speaking at the meeting, Mr. Rigoni said that he would like to learn whether Minsk had taken steps to forge closer ties with the Council of Europe.

The rapporteur described his visit as a fact-finding trip that he was going to use for preparing a report on the situation in Belarus, which is to be unveiled in early 2008. The report is expected to contain information about whether Belarus has taken steps to establish dialogue with PACE.

Mr. Papow, for his part, said that the Belarusian legislature studied international experience and maintained cooperation ties with 15 international parliamentary organizations. He pointed to a Belarusian law that requires the government to conduct a “multi-vector foreign policy that provides for equal cooperation and a respectful attitude to every state.”

“We are ready to discuss issues that are of interest to you and help make your visit to Belarus beneficial,” the chairman of the lower parliamentary chamber said.

Reporters were barred from the rest of the meeting.

Mr. Rigoni also was expected to hold talks with Henadz Navitski, chairman of the Council of the Republic, on Wednesday.

The PACE rapporteur is scheduled to meet with opposition leaders on October 18.

This is Mr. Rigoni’s first visit to Belarus. Cypriot MP Christos Pourgourides, Azerbaijan’s Asim Mollazade and Estonia’s Andres Herkel served as PACE rapporteurs on Belarus in the past.