On 13 September, the European Parliament adopted a resolution on relations with Belarus, in which MEPs label Belarus a “satellite state of Russia,” condemning the deployment of Russian nuclear weapons on its territory, and call Belarusian ruler Aliaksandr Lukashenka “an accomplice” in crimes committed by Russia in Ukraine. The resolution also calls for mirroring the existing sanctions against Russia against Belarus.
Here are the key points of the document.
- The resolution condemns the “repression and the systematic and widespread human rights violations continuously committed by the Lukashenka regime” and urges Belarus to “release all political prisoners, their family members and all persons arbitrarily detained.”
- The European Parliament denounces “the illegal transfer of more than 2,150 children, including orphans, from Russian-occupied areas of Ukraine to so-called recreational camps in Belarus, where they are subjected to Russification and indoctrination.”
- MEPs believe that “by enabling Russia’s unjustified war of aggression against Ukraine, the Lukashenka regime has become an accomplice in the crimes committed by Russia, which implies responsibility for the destruction and damage caused to Ukraine,” the resolution reads, further calling “for the EU institutions and the Member States to take all the actions necessary to enable the criminal prosecution of Belarusian officials who are complicit in the crime of aggression, war crimes, crimes against humanity and crimes of genocide committed against Ukraine.”
- The resolution calls on the EU and its member states to “broaden and strengthen the scope of their sanctions and to adopt a new set of sanctions against Belarus and Russia” and to mirror “the existing sanctions against Russia against Belarus.”
- MEPs regret “the fact that Belarus has become a satellite state of Russia and condemns the actions of the two regimes, which might lead to the eventual absorption and annexation of Belarus by Russia
- The resolution condemns “the deployment of tactical nuclear weapons under Russian command on Belarusian territory, in blatant violation of Belarus’s nuclear-free status, revoked following the fraudulent constitutional referendum of 27 February 2022.”
Read also:
- Lukashenka tries to uphold Belarus’ sovereignty narrative despite de-facto Russian occupation – think tank
- Russo-Ukrainian War. Day 556: Russia delivers first nuclear warheads to Belarus
- UK intel: Russia seeks to present Belarusian troops as positional force against NATO
- EU extends sanctions on Belarus weapons and ammunition exports
- Belarus Red Cross involved in kidnapping Ukrainian children
