Posted: 23.02.2022 11:07:00

‘We will not allow Belarus to be treated without respect’

Changes in the foreign policy and foreign economic policy of Belarus, the country’s position on NATO expansion, inadequate assessment of events by the West. Belarus’ Foreign Minister Vladimir Makei talked to journalists on these and other topics.


Vladimir Makei

During the press conference, the head of the Foreign Ministry expressed his conviction that Belarus had been chosen as a country that should be exemplarily punished.
Talking about the year 2021, Vladimir Makei stated, “We had to defend the sovereignty and independence of Belarus in the truest sense of the word.”
According to the Minister, the West has intensified its sanctions and does not even hide its goals. The West seeks to destabilise the social and political situation in the country, strangle its economy and deteriorate living standards for as many people as possible to force them to make an attempt to overthrow the government. No one thinks what will happen next.
“In today’s geopolitical context, the achievement of certain priorities is very important, if not vital, for the European Union. 
The West has chosen to make an example of Belarus in order to demonstrate its strength and geopolitical clout and teach others a lesson,” said Vladimir Makei. 
In his words, for some reason, Brussels believes that if it fails the Belarusian case it will lose face. So it is willing to sacrifice the long-term interests of both the Europeans and the Belarusians.
It is already clear that these attempts have failed and these goals will never be achieved, stressed the Foreign Minister. Moreover, in many respects, this pressure has helped Belarusian enterprises to become more mobile, flexible and even to diversify and increase their exports.
“We are not underdogs. We have allies, partners, national interests, and we will not allow Belarus to be treated without respect,” said Vladimir Makei.
According to him, the downgrade of ties with a number of countries and regions was offset by more intensive cooperation with those countries and associations that are ready to cooperate on the basis of mutual respect and equality. For example, last year Belarus managed to significantly step up cooperation within the Union State, the EAEU, and the CIS. Belarus continued expanding all-round cooperation with China and other distant countries.
At the same time, Belarus had to respond to unfriendly moves of the European Union by suspending its participation in the Eastern Partnership Initiative, limiting food imports from some countries, and taking symmetrical steps related to visa requirements.

‘Some kind of leaks in their brains’

Vladimir Makei drew the attention of media representatives to the fact that the level of co-operation with the collective West as a whole has noticeably decreased. And for this, we are not to blame,
“We are not the party of fault. It seems to me that the problem lies in our western partners’ inadequate assessment of what is happening inside and around Belarus.… The imposed five packages of sanctions do not contribute to the normal development of relations between Belarus and the West… I get surprised when reading about a briefing of an anonymous representative of the US State Department or statements of the leadership of the neighbouring countries — Lithuania, Latvia, and Poland. Western politicians have some kind of leaks in their brains; as a result, they absolutely inadequately size up the situation. This inadequate assessment is a result of miscalculations in their policy towards Belarus.”
Foreign Minister emphasised, “Believe me, the problem is rooted not in us. We are ready for dialogue with all partners, including difficult ones. In general, these are the countries of the European Union for us — though not all of them. At the same time, it should be a mutually respectful, equitable, and calm dialogue. At the moment, we observe no readiness on the part of our neighbours and a number of the EU countries in general for such an open dialogue.”


In particular, Vladimir Makei recalled that the president of Belarus had long ago come up with the initiative to launch a large-scale international dialogue Helsinki 2. At first, this was perceived sceptically at the international level, but it turned out later that the idea was good and relevant.
The Minister also added,
“We want to remain a security donor no matter how sceptical some people may be about this in the current situation, the situation of the sanctions-based confrontation between Belarus and the European Union. No one can say that Belarus contributed to tension, instability in our region and the world as a whole.”
Vladimir Makei sees a way out of the current tough situation in the European region by trying to find mutually acceptable points of contact.
“Yet, of course, we cannot calmly watch what is happening around us. If necessary, we will have to respond to the growing tension in our region and developments along our western and southern borders. We will take adequate steps,” stressed Foreign Minister.

The ‘spirit of San Francisco’ is important

Vladimir Makei explained the important position of our country: Belarus categorically opposes NATO expansion, “As for our stance on the expansion of NATO, it is well known. It has remained unchanged since the early 1990s. We have always been resolutely against the expansion of NATO. We believe that the promises that were once made to Gorbachev have been broken by our Western partners. As a result, we have a situation where no one trusts anyone, when the world is divided into ‘us’ and ‘not us’ and when such organisations as the OSCE Permanent Council, the UN Security Council have turned into a battlefield.”
The Minister said that losing ‘the spirit of San Francisco when the United Nations was set up’ is dangerous.
Another significant point: Belarus calls for holding a full-scale meeting of heads of state at the platform of the OSCE.
“It would help somewhat restore trust between countries and the division of nations into ‘us’ and ‘them’. We believe that dialogue is the only way to address issues. The absence of meetings that would help bring the situation back to normal is also our big problem,” supposes the Minister.

‘Specific work, not castles in the sand’

Vladimir Makei dwelled on integration cooperation, “It has been said many times that no one is forcing anyone to join either the Union State or the Eurasian Economic Union. Although these unions are open to other countries. We see interest from other states. A number of countries have already declared their readiness to conclude relevant agreements with the Eurasian Economic Union, some countries have become observers. Therefore, the process is underway, the dynamics are there. I am convinced that sooner or later these unions will become really attractive to other states, primarily those in the post-Soviet space.”
The head of the Foreign Ministry also announced the intention of Belarus to actively use Russian ports for cargo transhipment,
“Believe me, these are not some fairy tales, not some castles in the sand. Work is underway to actively use Russian ports for transhipment of Belarusian cargo. This is also a safety net for the future. Although I am convinced that sooner or later the situation in the western direction will normalise. But if our partners do not want to do this, then we must take appropriate steps to neutralise the negative consequences for us.”
According to him, agreements have already been reached with the Russian side, and this work continues.
“It is clear that this is not an overnight process. Achieving the most effective results will require some time, effort, and financial resources. Now our specialists are closely engaged in these issues,” concluded the Minister.

Based on materials of sb.by and belta.by
Photos by Vitaly Pivovarchik