„I want to point out that (&) that the tightening of sanctions against Belarus a few months ago took quite a long time. We were making every effort to avoid certain allowances for Lukashenko’s regime for more than a year. This is why those sanctions could not be approved sooner,“ Landsbergis told a joint press conference held with his Latvian counterpart Baiba Braže at Adutiškis border post in Švenčionys District on Monday.
The minister also highlighted Latvia’s significant input in strengthening the European Union’s (EU) position on Lukashenko’s regime.
„We are constantly working to ensure that the sanctions [against Belarus] are at least aligned with those applied to the Russian Federation,“ Landsbergis said.
Latvia’s Foreign Minister Braže stated that the two Baltic States are not yet satisfied with the scope of the current package of sanctions.
„We need to work with some of the partners, some of the governments in the EU, to make sure that those (&) groups of products and goods are also part of the sanctions list,“ Braže told reporters.
„As for what Lukashenko is saying, I would suggest to take it very critically,“ she added.