Belarusian Oppositionists Met State Department Representative

During their visit to Washington Tuesday Belarusian oppositionists had meetings in the US Department of State and in large non-governmental organizations: The National Democratic Institute for International Affairs (NDI), the National Endowment for Democracy (NED), and with leaders of Belarusian expatriate community.

As Radio Svaboda has been informed by one of the members of the delegation, the chairman of the Belarusian Popular Front party Vintsuk Vyachorka, in the US Department of State leaders of Belarusian opposition met with David Kramer, Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs.

“Mr. Kramer has informed us that under the executive order announced by the U.S. Treasury Department financial sanctions have been imposed on 6 more senior Belarusian officials. In has been done at the same time with 60 names of Belarusian officials in the US visa blacklist, which remains closed and not published. I think that they are simply executing the decisions under Belarus Democracy Act.

The matter does not concern freezing assets on the US territory, but impending financial operations by these people worldwide, as many financial institutions are connected with the USA. It is a political signal to Belarusian officials,” Vintsuk Vyachorka said.

Representatives of the US Department of State have also announced that the US attitude towards the current Belarusian regime remains unaltered in connection with exacerbation of relations between Minsk and Moscow:

“Mr. Kramer expressly told that their attitude towards democracy in Belarus and Belarusian independence is not changing because of external factors, is not changing in connection with the situation in Belarusian-Russian relations. He underlined that Washington would not make arrangements with Moscow behind Belarus’ back, that there won’t be any separate treaties concerning the future of Belarus,” the politician said.

The Belarusian delegation in Washington includes the leader of the BPF party Vintsuk Vyachorka, the chairman of the United Civil Party Anatol Lyabedzka, First Secretary of the Party of Communists of Belarus Syarhei Kalyakin, a wife of the political prisoner Iryna Kazulina and a chairman of a working group of the Non-governmental Organizations Assembly Syarhei Matskevich. Today they meet representatives of the editorial office of the “Washington Post”, a former US Ambassador to Belarus Michael Kozak, who is responsible for democracy, human rights and international affairs issues in the National Security Council now. Meeting in the Chamber of Representatives of the Congress are scheduled as well. The visit is to last until March 4.