MINSK, November 22. /TASS/. Belarus will blacklist a number of senior officials from the European Union and some of European nations, Foreign Minister Vladimir Makey said on Sunday.
"If they hurt us, if they impose sanction on us, naturally, we will have to respond adequately. You know that the European Union has imposed extra sanctions on some 15 people. We will also expand our sanction lists and will include senior officials from the European Union and from a number of European states," he said in an interview with the Belarus-1 television channel.
He recalled that opponents of the Belarusian authorities, who previously called only for tougher personal sanctions against Belarusian officials, now insist economic sanctions against the country be toughened. According to Makey, Minsk plans to discuss with the West the expediency of economic sanctions. "There calls for economic sanctions (voiced by the Belarusian opposition p- TASS), to my mind, are not just a silly thing, they are a big threat to Belarus’ statehood in general. If anyone thinks it will do good, he or she are mistaken. Naturally, we will speak with our Western partners on this matter," he said, adding that there is understanding in the West about the expediency of such measures.
"If someone wants a fire in this region," Minsk will find a way to respond. "And in this case, it will be hot around Belarus as well," he stressed.
The Belarusian top diplomat pledged that his country will never initiate any destructive steps against its partners. "We stand for the logic of cooperation, we will never be an initiator of any destructive actions against our partners," he emphasized.