BELARUS NEWS AND ANALYSIS

DATE:

07/08/2006

E.U. backs Latvia in diplomatic "gay sex" dispute with Belarus

A Brussels-based news service reports that relations between Belarus and the European Union have hit a new low following a bitter "gay sex" diplomatic row between Belarus and Latvia. The Finnish E.U. presidency has thrown Europe's weight behind Latvia after a so-called "gay porn" raid by Belarussian authorities on a Latvian diplomat's apartment.

What they claim are pornographic videos of Reimo Smits having sex with another man were seized and then broadcast on Belarus State Television. In retaliation, the Latvian foreign ministry has expelled the first secretary of the Belarussian Embassy in Riga, Latvia's capital, for "actions incompatible with diplomatic status."

The E.U. is declaring Belarus in breach of the 1961 Vienna Convention that sets out protections for diplomats. The Belarussian president and other senior officials are already barred from travel to the E.U. after rigged elections in April. (Sirius OutQ News)

Source:

http://www.advocate.com/news_detail_ektid35209.asp