Christos Pourgourides: Soon Russia Would Have to Stop Supporting Lukashenka :: Charter'97 :: News

“Soon Russian government would have to stop supporting of Belarusian leadership, and in this situation Lukashenka’s regime would have no backing,” told member of the PACE Subcommittee on Belarus, Cyprian deputy Christos Pourgourides told in his interview to BelaPAN. As we have informed, in Strasbourg (France) at the session of the PACE subcommittee on Belarus draft memorandum on situation in the country has been approved, criticizing the situation with human rights and civil freedoms in Belarus. Besides, on the same day the PACE passed the resolution on Russia’s fulfilling its obligations as the Council of Europe’s member, in particular suggesting that Russia should stop financial and political support for Belarus, and build relations depending on the progress of political reform in the country.

On June 23 Belarusian Ministry of Foreign Affairs called the PACE statements simply a repetition of previous accusations, and saying that PACE has neither objective vision of the situation nor real instruments of influencing the situation in Belarus. However, according to C. Pourgourides, the PACE’s approach to the situation in Belarus is “impartial”, and the position of the Subcommittee is objective. “The position of the Council of Europe influences greatly the decisions of the EU and the USA”, underlined Cyprian deputy.

He said that the statements are one of the methods of influence on the situation in the country, ad later other steps would follow. “The PACE position is to remain the same until the situation in Belarus would not change,” C. Pourgourides said.

PACE Special Rapporteur on Belarus Azim Mollazade (Azerbaijan) told in his interview to the BelaPAN, that the Assembly “has a great experience in the sphere of defense of such values as human rights and freedoms and rule of law”. “The separate subcommittee on Belarus shows itself that the country is far from standards to which the Council of Europe strives,” A.Mollazade said.

As said by him, “elementary human rights violations, crackdown on political opponents and mass media outlets, limitations of the work of the NGOs and political parties are taking place in Belarus”.

According to A.Mollazade, Russia as a member of the Council of Europe definitely cooperates with the organization, and “undoubtedly” is to listen to the recommendations and to use its influence on the country to change the situation with human rights.