BELARUS NEWS AND ANALYSIS

DATE:

01/05/2008

US warns Belarus it might have to close US missions

WASHINGTON (AFP) - The United States has warned Belarus it might close the US embassy in Minsk and make Belarus shut its US missions in an escalating row over alleged human rights abuses, an official said Thursday.

A State Department official told reporters that Washington had made no decision, but was considering such action after the US embassy in Minsk announced Wednesday it had been given 72 hours to bring home 10 US diplomats.

"We made it quite clear here and in Minsk that one of the options that was being considered, was simply to pull our remaining staff out and then require them to do the same," said the official who asked not to be named.

"That's not a decision we've made yet, but it is something we've warned them about," the official said.

"There is a real practical question as to whether you can effectively have, maintain, and run a diplomatic mission (with so few personnel), but that's a question that is still an open one," the official said.

The Belarussian foreign ministry said Wednesday it had reduced diplomatic staff at its Washington embassy to six, including the ambassador, and was demanding the expulsions after the US embassy in Minsk failed to follow suit.

As the US ambassador Karen Stewart has already left the country, five US diplomats will be allowed to remain, including head of mission Jonathan Moore, the US embassy in Minsk said.

Belarus earlier reduced the embassy staff from 32 to 17 in protest at US economic sanctions against domestic oil monopoly Belneftekhim that Belarus says violate international law.

Washington imposed the sanctions to put pressure on the country's authoritarian leadership to allow democratic freedoms and release political prisoners.

President Alexander Lukashenko has ruled Belarus with an iron hand since 1994. He has been dubbed in Western capitals "Europe's last dictator."

Phone calls and emails made Thursday by AFP to Belarus's embassy here and its consulate in New York went answered.

Source:

http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/20080501/pl_afp/belarususdiplomacy_080501181317

Google