BELARUS NEWS AND ANALYSIS

DATE:

19/02/2009

European Union offers Belarus closer ties, warns on Georgia

MINSK (Reuters) - European Union foreign policy chief Javier Solana on Thursday held out the prospect of closer ties with Belarus but warned Minsk against recognising two Georgian breakaway regions backed by Russia.

Solana's first visit to the ex-Soviet state was a further sign Belarus was seeking to end its international isolation over allegations of human rights violations and electoral abuses.

Solana, who met long-serving President Alexander Lukashenko, indicated the 27-member European Union would welcome stronger ties with Minsk through its "Eastern Partnership" scheme.

A European Commission official told Reuters Solana had warned Lukashenko against recognising the Georgian breakaway regions of Abkhazia and South Ossetia, the cause of a war in August between Russia and Georgia.

The official said it was a condition Lukashenko had to meet before being invited to meet European Union leaders in May.

Belarus has been under pressure from Moscow to recognise the regions as independent states and the Belarussian parliament is due to vote on this.

Lukashenko has been walking a thin line between keeping good relations with traditional ally Russia and developing better ties with the West, especially after a row with Moscow in 2006 over gas prices.

Belarus, once called the "last dictatorship in Europe" by the United States, has released the last of what had been deemed political prisoners and allowed opposition newspapers to be published in the country of 10 million.

"I think this meeting (with Lukashenko) will be very important. I think it is the start of deeper relations between Belarus and the European Union," Solana told journalists.

"Among the priorities of the European Union in 2009 is work on the "Eastern Partnership" initiative ... From my point of view there is a place for Belarus in this initiative," he said.

In a likely reference to the EU's contacts with Belarus's opposition, Lukashenko said: "I would very much ask that we try to exclude all intermediaries in our dialogues, especially those which have no good will towards our country. Intermediaries both within the country and beyond."

The EU initiated the Eastern Partnership scheme after Russia's brief war with Georgia last year. It offers financial aid, easier travel and conditional free trade pacts to Ukraine, Georgia, Armenia, Azerbaijan and Moldova, but not Russia.

Diplomats had said the scheme, for which Belarus had to qualify through democratic reforms, would be seen by Russia as interference in its traditional sphere of influence.

The EU presidency, now held by the Czech Republic, wants to invite Lukashenko to the first Eastern Partnership summit, which would gather leaders of Ukraine, Moldova, Georgia, Armenia and Azerbeidjan, if he continues with reforms.

The EU in October suspended a travel ban on Lukashenko and some officials, but kept some sanctions as a sign of displeasure with a parliamentary election, which observers said failed to meet international standards.

Source:

http://www.kyivpost.com/world/35850

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