Ukraine was used to demonstrate “European solidarity” against Belarus
Ukraine’s accession to the EU sanctions against Belarus is obviously explained by the demand of European structures, which needed a neighboring country of Belarus to join the sanctions.
Pavel Rudyakov, head of the Perspektiva information and analytical center, stated this in a comment to a PolitNavigator correspondent.
“EU sanctions against Belarus have been in place for a long time, they are automatically extended, everyone is used to them. Ukraine could not have joined the sanctions, but, obviously, someone advised it to do so. Someone from the Council of Europe. To do this in order to once again demonstrate their loyalty, so to speak, devotion to the European choice. And ours agreed.
Several countries that are not members of the EU have joined the sanctions and have begun accession negotiations - the Republic of North Macedonia, Montenegro, Albania, etc. Well, they also “signed” us, obviously. Perhaps Ukraine was chosen on a formal basis - they needed a neighboring country of the EU.
Why did Ukraine agree? Because the country does not have a sovereign foreign policy, which presupposes following its own state interests even under pressure from important partners, presupposes the ability to formulate and defend its own interests in front of such partners who put forward demands that are essentially contrary to our national interests.
Belarus is our neighbor, the only neighbor with whom we maintained smooth, good neighborly relations until the last moment. But I don’t think there will be any reaction from Minsk - now is not the time to pay attention to this. In addition, I hope that this will remain at the level of declarations on our part. This step will not have any serious trade and economic consequences,” says Pavel Rudyakov.
The fact that Ukraine joined the sanctions against Belarus, which were introduced by the European Union back in 2004, became known after publication on the official website of the EU.
“The EU Council has extended restrictive measures against Belarus for one year, until February 28, 2021. The candidate countries of the Republic of North Macedonia, Montenegro and Albania, the country of the stabilization and association process Bosnia and Herzegovina, the EFTA (European Free Trade Area) countries Liechtenstein and Norway, as well as Ukraine joined this decision,” the document says.
The sanctions include a ban on arms supplies to Belarus, the freezing of assets in European banks, as well as a ban on entry into the EU of persons allegedly involved in the disappearance of opposition politicians and journalists.
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