Belarus Updates: Opposition Candidates Face 15 Years in Prison
Thursday, December 23, 2010 at 8:38
2140 GMT: Writing in The New York Times, four Foreign Ministers --- Carl Bildt of Sweden, Guido Westerwelle of Germany, Karel Schwarzenberg of the Czech Republic, and Radek Sikorski of Poland --- have denounced the conduct of the Presidential election and suppression of protests. They continue with a call to suspend ties with President Lukashenko and to engage with the democratic opposition:
Continued positive engagement with Mr. Lukashenko at the moment seems to be a waste of time and money. He has made his choice — and it is a choice against everything the European Union stands for.
But there are many in Belarus who know that his clock is ticking — and are discreetly preparing for a better future.
Our many conversations with representatives of different parts of Belarus society have convinced us that the country wants to be part of a free and prosperous Europe. We must now deepen our engagement with the democrats of Belarus and those inside the government who disapprove of the fateful turn their country has taken. They must not be abandoned or betrayed as their country enters what might be a new dark era.