MINSK, May 7. /TASS/. Belarus has put together retaliatory measures towards the West, in case it slaps new sanctions against the Belarusian state, Foreign Minister Vladimir Makei told journalists Friday.
"We’ve discussed these measures before, they have been prepared. They will fit the situation that is unfolding. Steps by both European and Western opponents won’t be left unanswered. These measures have indeed been hammered out, so we are awaiting further development of the situation and further decisions by our Western partners," the top Belarusian diplomat said.
He pointed out that Minsk’s potential sanctions against European companies will not hurt the Belarusian economy.
"These will include symmetrical and asymmetrical sanctions, including possible measures against European businesses in Belarus. Many are now moaning over the Internet that the Belarusian leadership is supposedly shooting itself in the foot by deciding on reciprocal sanctions. Nobody is going to shoot themselves in the foot, or in the head, or in the heart. We clearly calculated all the options and we will not allow our measures to affect the economic development of our country, or the welfare of our citizens," the foreign minister assured.
Makei noted that the issue of sanctions is being actively promoted by "fugitive Belarusian criminals, who reside in some Western states."
"I’m amazed by [their] cynicism and hatred towards their own people. They say that these sanctions are meant to fight the regime and will not affect the welfare of the common people. They claim that the demands for sanctions come from the employees of enterprises themselves. Go visit Amkodor, MTZ, MAZ, and ask people working there whether they really want the introduction of some restrictive measures against their factories. [This is] absurd and cynical," the Belarusian diplomat stated.
Gearing up for retaliatory measures
Makei pointed out that Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko ordered a number of government agencies, including the Foreign Ministry, to put together reciprocal measures against possible future Western sanctions, and to convey the Belarusian position to its Western partners.
"We discuss these matters with [our] European colleagues during those contacts that we have, and we make our case. Unfortunately, it is not always accepted. We have scheduled contacts [with the Europeans], and we will also work with the ambassadors accredited to Belarus. So, our position will be clearly conveyed," Makei stressed.
He also expects that, sooner or later, "our partners [in the West] will realize what is behind the demands of fugitive criminals seeking to impose even more sanctions against their own people."
Following the Belarusian presidential election in August last year, the European Union adopted three sanctions packages against a number of Belarusian companies and individuals, whom Brussels considers involved in the alleged falsification of the election’s outcome, as well as responsible for the violence and groundless arrests. Washington is also renewing sanctions against nine Belarusian petrochemical companies. In response, Belarus restricted the import of products from three leading European companies: Liqui Moly, Skoda Auto and Beiersdorf.