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Minsk authorities ban sale of fortified fruit wines

The authorities in the Belarusian capital of Minsk have banned the sale of fortified sorts of fruit wine which are commonly known as “ink”

MINSK, November 2 (Itar-Tass) — The authorities in the Belarusian capital of Minsk have banned the sale of fortified sorts of fruit wine which are commonly known as “ink”.

“Our decision is well-considered. It took us a long time to make it,” Vladimir Koltovich, the vice-chairman of the Minsk city executive committee, told journalists on Friday.

The ban will be effective from December 1, 2012 to February 1, 2013. If the results are positive, we will extend the ban for a longer period of time,” Koltovich said.

The Minsk mayor’s office believes that the ban will enable a certain category of people to unlearn to drink “ink”.

At the same time, Koltovich said that alcohol-free fruit wines would remain on sale.

The Liberal Democratic Party of Belarus has put forward a more radical initiative. It submitted a proposal to the republic’s Council of Ministers, urging it to impose a ban on the production and sale of fortified fruit wines in the territory of Belarus.