Mr President, esteemed Members of the European Parliament, ladies and gentlemen,
The Council is very concerned about the negative developments in Belarus. President Lukashenko's regime is acting in an increasingly repressive manner and isolating itself more and more. In view of the forthcoming elections on 19 March this is particularly worrying.
Belarus has been repeatedly discussed in the Council of late. We of course noted with satisfaction the invitation to the OSCE/ODIHR to observe the elections. However, our greatest concern remains the worsening of the situation in Belarus. The General Affairs and External Relations Council discussed Belarus on 30 January, and the Ministers agreed on new conclusions. These conclusions sent a clear signal that assurances must be given that the OSCE/ODIHR can carry out its election observation mission, comprehensively and unimpeded. At the same time, a warning was given that further restrictive measures may be taken against those individuals responsible, if the presidential elections do not meet international standards.
The EU's policy towards Belarus was last examined in the Council conclusions of 7 November 2005. The conclusions represented a balanced mix of commitment to the population and civil society on the one hand and a harder line against the regime on the other. They also referred to the intention of the High Representative for the CFSP, Javier Solana, to nominate a close associate as his "contact point for Belarus".
We are aware of the need to take a long-term approach to work with Belarus. I believe it is no rash prediction to say that the elections on 19 March will not lead to any real change. Attempts have been made to convey our messages in the run-up to the elections. We had planned to make a joint high-level EU-US representation in early February through the Director General for External and Political-Military Affairs of the Council, Robert Cooper, and the US Assistant Secretary of State for Europe, Dan Fried, but the Belarusian authorities declined to grant them visas to visit at the same time. This made it impossible to carry out the joint representation. We expressed our disappointment at the failure of the Belarusian authorities to take this excellent opportunity to engage in an open and frank dialogue with the international community.
On 30 January, the date of the most recent General Affairs and External Relations Council, the Belarusian opposition candidate, Alexander Milinkevich, visited Brussels. He met representatives of the Member States informally and was also received by SG/HR Solana, Commission President Barroso and Commissioner Ferrero-Waldner. This was a clear sign of EU support for the democratic process in Belarus, even if we do not support individual candidates.
On no account does our policy aim to isolate Belarus. Instead we should like to see a democratic, stable and economically successful Belarus – with strong relations with the international community. For this reason we have made it clear that sustained development in the right direction could enable Belarus to benefit from the European Neighbourhood Policy. This clearly shows that we are prepared to reach out to Belarus and its people.
We should like to maintain normal and friendly relations with a country which is our immediate neighbour, but this does not seem possible in the current circumstances. The Council will not close its eyes to the ongoing violations of human rights and civil liberties, and it will also continue to express clearly its concern at negative developments in Belarus. In order to support democracy in Belarus, the Council remains prepared for intensive commitment and for cooperation and coordination with its international partners.
Despite the probable outcome of the election, we must make joint efforts to maintain the presence and the influence of the EU in Belarus. The EU commitment to Belarus is a long-term project and we should therefore not be discouraged by current difficulties.
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