Belarus Accuses European Commission of 'Unlawful Interference' in Stranded Lithuanian Lorry Row
On Monday 23 February, representatives of the Belarusian Ministry of Foreign Affairs held a meeting in Geneva with Tatiana Molcean, UN Under-Secretary-General and Executive Secretary of the UN Economic Commission for Europe (UNECE). During the talks, Belarus’s Deputy Foreign Minister, Igor Sekreta, among other things, accused the European Commission of ‘unlawful interference in Minsk’s relations with Vilnius’.
Mr Sekreta criticised the European Commission for its ‘unlawful attempts’ to intervene in resolving the issue of Lithuanian lorries that have been stranded in Belarus since October last year. The Belarusian foreign ministry official insisted the matter should be settled bilaterally, between Belarus and Lithuania.
Another source of grievance for the Belarusian side against the European Commission was the European Agreement concerning the International Carriage of Goods by Road. According to Mr Sekreta, the European Commission is failing to meet its commitments.
Meanwhile, discussing with Ms Molcean the joint Belarusian-Russian initiative to develop Euro-Asian rail freight corridor No 1 and Belarus’s involvement in the project work of the UNECE, Mr Sekreta stressed the importance of the organisation maintaining a ‘depoliticised’ stance. In the view of Belarusian diplomatic officials, this is essential for effective economic development and improving transport connectivity in the region.
Another contentious issue raised by the deputy minister at the meeting was the Polish fencing within the Białowieża Forest, which the Belarusian side regards as nothing less than a violation by Poland of the UNECE’s environmental agreements. The Belarusian foreign ministry called for ‘appropriate solutions’ to this matter from the international body’s relevant bodies, as well as a response to the economic problems in the region which, in Minsk’s view, have been provoked by unilateral sanctions against UN member states.
Last week, as previously reported, Alexander Volfovich, the State Secretary of Belarus’s Security Council, accused Poland, Lithuania and Latvia of being unwilling to ‘engage in constructive dialogue’ with Belarus at the foreign ministry level.
Вольфович обвинил Польшу, Литву и Латвию в нежелании идти на диалог – «Не надо нам диктовать»
Earlier, Remigijus Motuzas, Chairman of the Lithuanian Seimas Committee on Foreign Affairs and a representative of the ruling party, stated that Vilnius had agreed to Minsk’s demand to begin negotiations at the level of foreign ministries. However, no specific meetings between representatives of the two countries have been officially announced since then.
Литва согласилась на переговоры с Беларусью в «нейтральном месте» — LRT