Minister of Foreign Affairs of Belarus Vladimir Makei commented on Ukraine’s joining the anti-Belarusian sanctions of the European Union (EU), BelTA reported in its Telegram channel.
In his opinion, Ukraine’s policy is “a mockery of common sense.” “We cannot regard this step as anything other than an absolutely unfriendly step and an attempt to interfere in the internal affairs of Belarus,” Makei said.
He added that Ukraine’s accession to Western sanctions against Belarus is another non-independent decision of a neighboring country, which demonstrates the inconsistency of its policy.
At the same time, Belarus has prepared a sanctions list against a number of Ukrainian officials.
In Belarus, for the fourth month, mass protests continue after the presidential elections on August 9, according to which Alexander Lukashenko, who ran for the sixth term, received 80 percent of the vote. The first shares were violently accelerated. Seven thousand people were detained, many of them told about torture and beatings in isolation wards. It is known about those killed by the protesters.
Against the background, relations between Ukraine and Belarus have deteriorated sharply. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky publicly recommended Lukashenko to hold new elections, to which the Belarusian side replied that it did not need “worn-out advice.” As a result, Ukraine suspended contacts with a neighboring country and joined the sanctions imposed by the EU in attitude of Belarus.