BELARUS NEWS AND ANALYSIS

DATE:

07/10/2008

Belarus Must End Isolation After Disputed Vote, OSCE Says

By Katya Andrusz

Oct. 7 (Bloomberg) -- Europe's main democracy watchdog said Belarus must chart a path to reform, following its criticism of last month's parliamentary elections for not meeting international standards.

``I prefer engagement to isolation,'' Finnish Foreign Minister Alexander Stubb, who currently chairs the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, said in a statement today. A schedule for ``pending reforms'' in Belarus is now needed, he said.

The OSCE slammed the Sept. 28 election after President Alexander Lukashenko's allies claimed all 110 seats in parliament, triggering criticism from the European Union and U.S. The 2006 presidential elections in which Lukashenko won a third term were also disputed.

Stubb was in Minsk today to meet Lukashenko, who has ruled the country of 10 million that lies wedged between EU member Poland and Russia since 1994. It was the first visit of an OSCE chairman to Belarus since 2004, the statement said.

Source:

http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601095&sid=ahwsDxqvla50

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