Aliaksandr Milinkievich: The Authorities Push themselves into corner

The Movement for Freedom (the MFF) leader comments on the punishment in the form of several days of administrative arrest of Young Belarus movement activists who made a performance near the ‘Belarus’ department store.

Milinkievich thinks the return of the administrative arrests practices is harmful to the image of Belarus and won’t contribute to the improvement of the economic cooperation with the EU.

“The authorities push themselves into corner. The European policy makers don’t have a single opinion about what policy should be used with regard to the Belarus regime. Sanctions of any kind would give additional arguments to the supporters of the isolation of our country. The policy of closer ties of the EU and Belarus, of the economic aid of the West, and of the modernization of our economy might be revised due to the brutal and unreasonably cruel actions of the Belarusian authorities towards our citizens”.

The MFF leader thinks the Belarusian authorities cannot rely on Russia’s help in the conditions of the current crisis:

“At the same time, it becomes clear that Russia won’t make any concessions with regard to the economic and even political cooperation with the present authorities. Gazprom strongly refuses to postpone the prescheduled rise in the natural gas price (it will increase by 12% starting with the next year) and – as the Beltransgaz (Belarusian gas pipeline company) shareholder – expresses a desire to raise the gas rates for the Belarusian consumers. In exchange for the preservation of the preferential oil prices in the next year, Russia requires the Belarusian side to sell its oil refineries for a song. It was Moscow who forced Belarus to create the Customs Union which doesn’t correspond with the national interests of our country”, Milinkievich thinks.

For reference – The young activists arranged a performance near the Belarus department store on December 2. They offered all who wished to throw eggs at the drawing of a man with moustache with the inscription on it: “If you don’t like the regime, throw an egg at me”. The militia detained Andrej Kuzminski, Paval Prakapovich, Nasta Mashchava, and Ryhor Babrou. Prakapovich and Babrou were punished with 15 days’ arrest each while Kuzminski was punished with 7 days’ arrest.

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