30 June 2006
Belarus problem should be resolved through CE dialogue

A deputy Russian foreign minister said Thursday that the current crisis around Belarus should be resolved by means of dialogue in the Council of Europe.

Belarus was deprived of the status of a "specially invited" state to PACE after 1994 elections in the country, when Alexander Lukashenko was elected president. Belarus was discussed at PACE's January session, which labeled Lukashenko's regime "dictatorial."

"Russia is convinced that problems should be resolved through dialogue," Alexander Grushko said at the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe. He said such issues could not be resolved by ultimatums.

The EU in April approved a ban on entry to the EU against 31 Belarusian officials, including Lukashenko, after presidential elections in the country in March were declared fraudulent by international observers and opposition leaders. The EU also decided in May to freeze the accounts of Lukashenko, dubbed "Europe's last dictator" by Washington. //RIA Novosti