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Belarusian diplomat: Minsk working on US embassy’s return to Belarus
October 26, Pozirk. Minsk is working to relocate the US embassy back to Belarus, Valancin Rybakoŭ, Belarus’ permanent representative to the UN, told state-run Belarus 1 TV yesterday.
“The Americans have raised certain issues with us, the Belarusian side, which, from their point of view, will allow them to fully relocate to Minsk,” he said.
The US has not officially closed its embassy, Rybakoŭ noted. Washington cited security concerns following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine when relocating its diplomats to Lithuania, he explained. US diplomats have all the necessary documents, visas and permits, he added.
Rybakoŭ also said that direct flights between Minsk and the US were a long way off, describing the process as “very lengthy.” He cited security, certification, aircraft, pilots, personnel and airport-related issues as obstacles.
Last month, US Special Envoy for Belarus John Coale told Russia’s Dozhd TV channel that he hoped to improve relations between Belarus and the US so that their embassies could reopen in the future. Coale said he had not raised democratization during his talks with Alaksandar Łukašenka, although he might do so in the future.
Five years ago, Minsk withdrew its consent to the appointment of Julie Fisher, then the US chargé d’affaires, as ambassador to Belarus. Belarusian authorities also demanded a significant reduction in US embassy staff. Since then, the two countries have been represented by chargés d’affaires.
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Alaksandar Łukašenka has signaled to Washington that he remains interested in a possible “grand bargain,” even as the deal appears to be slipping away. John Coale, the US special envoy for Belarus, did not visit Minsk in mid-October as expected. …
