BELARUS NEWS AND ANALYSIS

DATE:

12/03/2008

US ambassador to Belarus leaves for Washington amid diplomatic tension

The Associated Press

MINSK, Belarus: The U.S. ambassador to Belarus left for Washington on Wednesday amid diplomatic tension, the U.S. Embassy said.

Ambassador Karen Stewart's departure came after Belarus said last week that it was recalling its ambassador to Washington for consultations and strongly suggested that the United States do the same.

In a statement on its Web site, the U.S. Embassy in Minsk said that Stewart's absence was temporary and that she remains the ambassador to Belarus.

Ties between the U.S. and Belarus are badly strained. U.S. officials have called President Alexander Lukashenko "Europe's last dictator" for his authoritarian rule and intolerance of dissent in the ex-Soviet republic of 10 million.

The Belarusian Foreign Ministry said Friday that its call for Stewart's departure had been prompted by the U.S. sanctions against Belarus' state-controlled oil-processing and chemicals company, Belneftekhim. The U.S. last year froze the company's assets and barred American companies from doing business with it.

The Embassy statement said U.S. policy toward Belarus remains unchanged, and stressed that if it wants to improve ties, the government must release all inmates the United States considers political prisoners.

"The U.S. Embassy expresses its support for the democratic aspirations of the Belarusian people," it said. "Following the unconditional release of all political prisoners, the United States stands ready to explore steps to improve our bilateral relations."

Source:

http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2008/03/12/europe/EU-GEN-Belarus-US.php

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