Ronald Pofalla: EU to return to economic sanctions discussion after trials

The Belarusian authorities use the metro blast to tighten crackdown on political and civil society activists.

This opinion was expressed by Ronald Pofalla, the Chief of German the Chancellor’s Office a Federal Minister for Special Affairs, at a press conference in Vilnius on May 5, BelaPAN news agency reports.

“We are keeping a close eye on the event in Belarus. After trials are ended, we will prepare a new estimation and take necessary measures,” Pofalla said.

According to him, “it would be cynic to suppose” that changing charges against certain persons involved in the criminal case can make the European Union take a more liberal stance towards Belarus. “We see both the previous and the current charges illegal and inadmissible,” Pofalla said.

In his opinion, the European Union can again return to discussion of economic sanctions against Belarus. “But we need to be very careful so that ordinary citizens do not become victims of these economic measures. Sanctions must affect only the political regime, but people should not suffer from consequences. This is difficult, that’s why we need to analyze this issue,” the German minister said.

The European Union was keeping a close eye on the situation with “Narodnaya Volya” and “Nasha Niva” newspapers, Pofalla said. He noted that the EU finds closing down these papers as inadmissible as dispersal of peaceful demonstrations. “Independent media is a part of a free and democratic society. The regime must be pressed from outside to give journalist an opportunity to work,” Pofalla said.