BRUSSELS, July 18. /TASS/. The European Parliament Committee on Foreign Affairs (AFET) approved a report on the situation in Belarus Tuesday, calling on EU countries and institutions to seek an International Criminal Court (ICC) arrest warrant for Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko for his involvement in the evacuation of children from the combat area in Ukraine. The Committee refers to accusations made earlier against Russian President Vladimir Putin and Russian Commissioner for Children’s Rights Maria Lvova-Belova.
"Belarus is responsible for damage caused to and crimes committed in Ukraine, MEPs point out, including through the regime’s role in the illegal transfer of children [from the combat area - TASS]. The report therefore calls on the EU institutions and member states to take all necessary steps at the international level to enable the criminal prosecution of those Belarusian political and military leaders responsible for crimes against humanity and genocide. With the International Criminal Court (ICC) already having issued arrest warrants for Russian President Vladimir Putin and Russian Children’s Rights Commissioner Maria Lvova-Belova, MEPs call on the ICC to consider a similar arrest warrant for [Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko]," the press release reads.
Concerns for sovereignty
A large portion of the report is titled "Fears over Russia’s subordination of Belarus."
The report noted that "MEPs note with great concern the rampant political, economic, military and cultural subordination of Belarus to Moscow, rendering the country a de-facto satellite state that also hosts tactical nuclear weapons under Russian command."
In this regard, the European Parliament calls on EU states and institutions "not to recognize any agreements made by the Lukashenko regime and Russia that cede the country’s sovereignty against the will of the Belarusian people."
European context
The entire history of European integration and the European Union, starting with the establishment of the European Coal and Steel Community in 1952, is a history of gradual submission of authority of EU states to the EU’s supranational institutions.
US B-61 tactical nuclear aviation bombs have been permanently deployed in four non-nuclear EU states - Germany, Italy, Belgium and the Netherlands - since the Cold War.