Contents tagged with Belarus
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Lithuania builds barbed wire fence on the border with Belarus
On Friday, July 9, The Lithuanian army began to install a barbed wire fence on the southern border with Belarus near the city of Druskininkai, reported the Lithuanian news agency BNS.
The total length of the border section where barbed wire fence will appear is about 30 kilometers. The fence is being built in this location because since the beginning of the year the largest number of illegal migrants, more than half a thousand, have been detained here. In total, during 2021, at least one and …
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Baltic countries to stop energy imports from Russia and Belarus
The Baltic countries are beginning to exit the electricity network with Russia and Belarus, which they have been using since the Soviet times.
According to Interfax, on Tuesday, Lithuanian electricity transmission system operator Litgrid AB announced a three-fold reduction in the electricity intake from Belarus.
From September 15, the maximum transmission capacity from Belarus to Lithuania will be reduced from the current 1,250 megawatts to 400 megawatts.
Lithuania has restricted electricity …
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Lithuania grants diplomatic status to Belarusian opposition leader’s office
The Lithuanian authorities have granted the office of the leader of the Belarusian opposition, Svetlana Tikhanovskaya, official diplomatic status, announced Lithuanian Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis, handing the policy a note of the Foreign Ministry on accreditation, TASS reports.
"The Belarusian Democratic Representation has been officially accredited in Lithuania," Landsbergis said.
The minister added that this was done at the request of Tikhanovskaya's office.
Landsbergis also …
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Lithuania declares state of emergency due to influx of migrants from Belarus
The Lithuanian government has decided to declare a state of emergency, due to the influx of illegal migrants coming through the border with Belarus, reports Delfi.
Interior Minister Agnė Bilotaitė is heading the emergency operation.
It is noted that over the past 24 hours Lithuanian border guards detained 150 illegal migrants. This is almost three times more than the previous daily records.
Currently, 835 accommodation places have been created for illegal migrants. 500 of them have been …
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Lukashenko claims Putin promised economic assistance to Belarus
Self-proclaimed Belarusian president Alexander Lukashenko said that Moscow promised Minsk "economic assistance" amid new EU sanctions. On Thursday, July 1, Lukashenko and Russian President Vladimir Putin took part in the plenary session of the VIII Forum of the Regions of Belarus and Russia. Because of the pandemic, the event was held over video conference.
According to Lukashenko, before the meeting he and Putin had a telephone conversation, during which they agreed to "update" some "economic …
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Largest Russian cargo airline starts bypassing Belarus due to sanctions
Russia's largest cargo carrier, the private group Volga-Dnepr, owned by Russian oligarch Alexey Isaikin, refused to fly over Belarus, according to FlightRadar24 data. "We have indeed decided not to use the airspace of Belarus for flights," a representative of the Volga-Dnepr group told the Russian news agency RBC. He declined to comment further.
This happened after the European Union, Great Britain, and the United States imposed sanctions against Belarusian companies, including the national …
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Russia stops oil supplies to Belarus' largest refinery
Russia has stopped supplying oil to Belarus' largest refinery, which has come under US sanctions imposed for "election fraud" and "flagrant human rights violations" by Alexander Lukashenko's regime.
Naftan refinery, which in the past processed 5.5 million barrels of Russian oil per month, is not included in the export schedule of the Russian oil industry for the third quarter, Interfax reports.
Deliveries to the second largest refinery, Mozyr Oil Refinery, will continue and will amount to 2.36 …
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EU imposes sanctions on 78 Belarusian officials including members of Lukashenko's family
The European Union has decided to freeze assets of 78 Belarusian officials and eight Belarusian companies, reported the Radio Liberty journalist Rikard Jozwiak on Twitter.
According to him, the EU froze assets and imposed visa bans on several Belarusian businessmen, law enforcement officials, prosecutors, rectors, and high-ranking military officials.
Family members of the self-proclaimed president of Belarus, Alexander Lukashenko, were also put on the sanctions list.
Jozwiak added that …
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European Parliaments calls for disconnecting Belarus from SWIFT
The European Parliament calls for Belarus to be disconnected from the SWIFT payment system, as well as to ban the country's national team from participating in the Tokyo Olympic, reported the Belarusian news outlet Nasha Niva.
The European Parliament calls on the Council of the European Union to expand sanctions against Belarus as soon as possible. The sanctions list should include all those responsible for the forced landing of the Ryanair passenger plane and the arrest of opposition …
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NATO concerned over Belarus’ increased dependence on Russia
NATO is concerned over increased cooperation between Russia and Belarus, said NATO’S Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg,
In an interview with the German weekly Welt am Sonntag, Stoltenberg said that NATO member states were "seriously concerned" about the close engagement between Presidents Vladimir Putin and Alexander Lukashenko in recent months.
According to Stoltenberg, Belarus is becoming "increasingly dependent" on Russia.
He warned Moscow and Minsk against destabilizing the situation on …