Sunday

10th Dec 2023

EU breaks the ice with Belarus

The European Commission has proposed inviting Belarus foreign minister Sergei Martynov to a high-level EU meeting, breaking a four-year long taboo on contact with the eastern European dictatorship.

"I believe there could be a so-called trojka meeting on the margins of the next foreign ministers session [in Paris on 15 September]," external relations commissioner Benita Ferrero-Waldner said at an informal EU gathering in Avignon, France on Saturday (6 September). "I would personally support such a move."

Read and decide

Join EUobserver today

Become an expert on Europe

Get instant access to all articles — and 20 years of archives. 14-day free trial.

... or subscribe as a group

The trojka would see Mr Martynov - a former Belarus ambassador to the EU known for his fluent English and open manner - talk about future relations with the commissioner, French foreign minister Bernard Kouchner and EU top diplomat Javier Solana.

The EU currently has a visa ban on 41 senior Belarus figures. It has also banned bilateral meetings between EU member states and Belarus officials above deputy minister-level and has excluded the country from its list of low tariff trade partners. Mr Martynov's trip to Paris would require a temporary derogation from the visa ban list.

The commission proposal comes after Belarus freed three political prisoners last month. The one-time Russia ally is trying to build better relations with the EU amid Russian pressure to move closer to state union or risk paying higher prices for gas.

"It is a very good time to rethink our relations with Belarus. Belarus is sending desperate signals to the West," Lithuanian foreign minister Petras Vaitiekunas said at the Avignon gathering, newswires report.

"Compared to Cuba [on which the EU lifted sanctions in June], Belarus - while still far away from our standards - is a less restrictive regime, in which you can do business, you can travel and which has no political prisoners," Polish foreign minister Radoslaw Sikorski said.

The EU ministers indicated that any large-scale review of sanctions would not take place unless the OSCE gives a positive verdict on the conduct of Belarus parliamentary elections on 28 September. They also warned Minsk to resist Moscow's call to recognise the independence of two breakaway regions in Georgia.

"Belarus can show a real willingness to open up...if it doesn't recognise South Ossetia and Abkhazia," Estonian foreign minister Urmas Paet said.

Meanwhile, Belarus pro-democracy activists are wary the EU may normalise relations for strategic reasons instead of waiting for deeper democratic reforms.

"We are being put under pressure to take part in an electoral farce, so that the US and Europe have a chance to recognise [Belarus president] Lukashenka," the co-founder of the Charter97 opposition group, Andrei Sannikov, said in an interview with Voice of America.

The OSCE's election-monitoring verdict is supposed to be an independent assessment of technical aspects of the vote, such as candidates' access to media and ballot counting. But one EU official suggested that Western governments can influence the judgement.

"No matter what happens in the elections, the OSCE verdict will say something positive about democratic reforms," the European Commission contact said.

Analysis

Tense EU-China summit showdown unlikely to bear fruit

EU leaders will meet their Chinese counterparts in Beijing for the first face-to-face summit since 2019. Their agenda includes trade imbalances, economic security, Ukraine and human rights — what can be expected by the end of 48 hours of talks?

Afghanistan is a 'forever emergency,' says UN head

Afghanistan is a "forever emergency" rendered worse by an isolated country intent on dismantling human rights, says UN refugee agency (UNHCR) representative for the country, Leonard Zulu.

Latest News

  1. How Moldova is trying to control tuberculosis
  2. Many problems to solve in Dubai — honesty about them is good
  3. Sudanese fleeing violence find no haven in Egypt or EU
  4. How should EU reform the humanitarian aid system?
  5. EU suggests visa-bans on Israeli settlers, following US example
  6. EU ministers prepare for all-night fiscal debate
  7. Spain's Nadia Calviño backed to be EIB's first female chief
  8. Is there hope for the EU and eurozone?

Stakeholders' Highlights

  1. Nordic Council of MinistersJoin the Nordic Food Systems Takeover at COP28
  2. Nordic Council of MinistersHow women and men are affected differently by climate policy
  3. Nordic Council of MinistersArtist Jessie Kleemann at Nordic pavilion during UN climate summit COP28
  4. Nordic Council of MinistersCOP28: Gathering Nordic and global experts to put food and health on the agenda
  5. Friedrich Naumann FoundationPoems of Liberty – Call for Submission “Human Rights in Inhume War”: 250€ honorary fee for selected poems
  6. World BankWorld Bank report: How to create a future where the rewards of technology benefit all levels of society?

Stakeholders' Highlights

  1. Georgia Ministry of Foreign AffairsThis autumn Europalia arts festival is all about GEORGIA!
  2. UNOPSFostering health system resilience in fragile and conflict-affected countries
  3. European Citizen's InitiativeThe European Commission launches the ‘ImagineEU’ competition for secondary school students in the EU.
  4. Nordic Council of MinistersThe Nordic Region is stepping up its efforts to reduce food waste
  5. UNOPSUNOPS begins works under EU-funded project to repair schools in Ukraine
  6. Georgia Ministry of Foreign AffairsGeorgia effectively prevents sanctions evasion against Russia – confirm EU, UK, USA

Join EUobserver

Support quality EU news

Join us