FRG Ambassador: “We don’t refuse to have dialog with Belarus”
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15:37, — Politics
A decision of Friedrich Ebert Foundation, German political organisation, on closing down its office in Belarus doesn’t mean FRG rejects its policy pursued towards Belarus, FRG Ambassador to Belarus Gebhardt Weiss said.
The diplomat noted the decision on closing down was taken in the connection with certain difficulties in office’s functioning, but he thinks there exists a necessary potential for successful solving of this problem, AFN reports.
“It is out of the question that our policy towards Belarus can be changed. We continue to work in the direction of dialog,” Gebhardt Weiss said.
According to him, one shouldn’t associate problems of the office with Germany’s foreign policy.
“The foundation is not FRG, not the Cabinet of Germany. It belongs to a lower level,” the German diplomat noted. “Political foundations are not an instrument of FRG foreign policy. These structures act independently.”
“We give them recommendations if they ask for,” Gebhardt Weiss said.
He emphasised he knew the problems the foundation had in Belarus, and said they concerned organisation of work.
“There are troubles. They are salaries, social security contributions,” Gerbhardt Weiss said.
Commenting on a press-release of head of the Regional Office of the Friedrich Ebert Foundation for Ukraine and Belarus, spread yesterday, FRG ambassador to Belarus noted Stefan Chrobot used some political cliches.
“Changed conditions in Belarus and steps taken by the official regime caused inevitable office closing down,” the foundation’s press release says.
“We’ll see what the results of such policy will be,” the FRG Ambassador to Belarus added.
The German diplomat thinks the question of closing down of the office hasn’t been finally established. He said the wording “close down process” wasn’t used by Stefan Chrobot just by chance. Mr Weiss noted he was in constant touch with Berlin and the Belarusian authorities on this matter.
“I hope it will be possible to solve the problem. There exits a sufficient potential for successful solving of this problem,” the diplomat stressed.
In general, Gebhardt Weiss made understand that Germany hadn’t exhausted optimism in hope to persuade the Belarusian authorities to take further steps towards democratisation.
7 April the European Union plans to publish its decision on sanctions against Belarus. Irrespective of the decision, further actions of the Belarusian government will be a good proof of how good Germany was in its role of a leader in establishing a dialog with the Belarusian regime.
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