BELARUS NEWS AND ANALYSIS

DATE:

06/10/2008

Belarus, EU to hold milestone meeting

By Rikard Jozwiak

The EU will raise the issue of Belarus' "disappointing" parliamentary election at the first high-level meeting in two years.

The European Commission has confirmed that Belarus' foreign minister has been invited to a meeting with three senior EU officials, the first time that a high-ranking Belarusian politician has been offered such a meeting since the bloc imposed travel restrictions on 37 Belarusian officials following rigged presidential election in 2006.

The meeting, which will be held on 13 October on the sidelines of a gathering of EU foreign ministers in Luxembourg, will bring Serhiy Martynov face to face with French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner, whose country occupies the presidency of the EU, Javier Solana, the EU's foreign-policy chief, and Benita Ferrero-Waldner, the European commissioner for external relations.

During the meeting, which was suggested in a phone conversation between Solana and Martynov on 3 October, the EU officials will discuss what the EU has already described as last week's "disappointing" parliamentary election, in which no member of the opposition secured even 20% in a constituency. International observers despatched by the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) judged the election to fall short of international standards, particularly highlighting shortcomings in the voting and counting processes. However, the presence of OSCE monitors was in itself an advance on the 2006 election, as too was the decision by police not to break up a post-election rally by members of the opposition.

Despite the limited nature of the improvements in the election, several countries, among them neighbouring Poland and Lithuania, are keen for the EU to play a more active role in its eastern borderlands, and there have been signs - ranging from a change in economic policy, the release of political prisoners and resistance to Russian demands - that Belarusian President Alyaksandr Lukashenka is keen to forge better relations with the EU. Lukashenka and his associates are thought to be particularly keen to see visa restrictions lifted.

The discussion at the meeting of foreign ministers - known as GAERC in Brussels - is expected to be broad-ranging and is unlikely to bring specific changes. However, in EU policymaking circles, there has been discussion of the possibility of taking steps to make access to Europe easier for ordinary Belarusians. Among those possibilities are scholarships and a reduction in the cost of visas, from ?60 to ?35, a symbolical move supported by several member states.

There are, however, many doubts that the regime in Minsk is receptive to the democratic reforms that the EU is hoping for. There are also questions about Minsk's willingness and ability to forge a relationship with the West that is independent of Russia.

Source:

http://www.europeanvoice.com/article/2008/10/belarus,-eu-to-hold-milestone-meeting/62574.aspx

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