{"id":204707,"date":"2026-09-22T12:59:54","date_gmt":"2026-09-22T09:59:54","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/204707\/"},"modified":"2026-09-22T12:59:56","modified_gmt":"2026-09-22T09:59:56","slug":"ukraines-top-diplomat-warns-against-easing-sanctions-on-minsk","status":"publish","type":"articles","link":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/news\/204707\/","title":{"rendered":"Ukraine’s top diplomat warns against easing sanctions on Minsk\u00a0"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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\n\n Andrii Sybiha and \u015aviat\u0142ana Cichano\u016dskaja \n <\/div>\n \n
\n (mfa.gov.ua)<\/span>\n <\/div>\n <\/figcaption>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

September 22,<\/strong> Pozirk.<\/strong> <\/em>Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha urged Kyiv\u2019s allies not to ease sanctions pressure on Alaksandar \u0141uka\u0161enka\u2019s regime in exchange for freeing dissidents in his address to a Belarus-themed event on the sidelines of the UN High-Level Week in New York. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe release of innocent people should always be welcome, but treating their freedom as a bargaining chip encourages the taking of new hostages and the exchange of their release for what his regime needs,\u201d the Ukrainian foreign ministry\u2019s press office quoted him as saying.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The diplomat outlined three priorities: increasing pressure on the \u0141uka\u0161enka regime over its role in Russia\u2019s aggression, preventing Belarus from being drawn further into the war and continuing comprehensive support for Belarusian pro-democracy forces. A free Belarus would be essential to the security of the region and Europe as a whole, he stressed.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sybiha warned that easing sanctions pressure on Belarus over its role in Russia\u2019s war would send Moscow and Minsk a signal that aggression pays off. Pressure on the regimes in Moscow and Minsk would be effective only if it left no room for exceptions or compromises, the minister noted, arguing that sanctions should target both Russian oligarchs and Belarusian resources without exemptions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Western policy toward the \u0141uka\u0161enka regime should be based on a realistic assessment of its ties with Russia rather than on expectations that Minsk could act independently, Sybiha said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At the same time, the official stressed the need to clearly distinguish between the \u0141uka\u0161enka regime and the Belarusian people, who demonstrated their desire for freedom during the 2020 postelection protests. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Kyiv is discussing ways to counter the \u0141uka\u0161enka regime with Belarusian pro-democracy forces and supports sanctions proposals put forward by Belarusian opposition leader \u015aviat\u0142ana Cichano\u016dskaja and her team, the minister said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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