MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 02nd September, 2020) Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov is set to hold in-person talks with his Belarusian counterpart Vladimir Makei on Wednesday, the first face-to-face meeting of the two diplomats since the August 9 presidential election in Belarus that has since been followed by weeks of protests.
Maria Zakharova, spokeswoman for the Russian Foreign Ministry, told Sputnik on Monday of the plans for the two ministers to meet in Moscow for crunch talks.
The meeting will follow on the back of several telephone conversations between Lavrov and Makei over recent weeks following the election, which saw the incumbent president Alexander Lukashenko win a sixth term in office.
MEETING FOLLOWS CALLS FOR NORMALIZATION
Lavrov and Makei first held talks on August 10, in the immediate aftermath of the Belarusian presidential election and the first night of protests. At that time, both parties shared their views on the political situation in Belarus, particularly in the context of foreign interference in Minsk's domestic affairs.
One day later, following a meeting with German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas, Lavrov called on the authorities in Minsk to promptly release all Russian reporters who were detained while attempting to cover the protests.
Dozens of Russian journalists have been detained and subject to violence in Belarus, particularly during the first week of the protests. RIA Novosti photojournalist Ilya Pitalev, Sputnik Belarus correspondents Inna Grishuk and Evgeny Oleinik, and RT reporter Konstantin Pridybailo were among those who were arrested by law enforcement officers during the first days of the protests.
Despite the Belarusian security services toning down their use of force against protesters over recent days, journalists are still being targeted for document checks. On Tuesday, several reporters, including RIA Novosti correspondent Kirill Rubtsov, were detained and taken to the Oktyabrskiy district police department before eventually being released.
Moscow has urged Minsk to allow Russian journalists to work unhindered in Belarus, although the Russian authorities have also expressed support for the country's sovereignty and independence.
During telephone talks between Lavrov and Makei on August 21, the Russian foreign minister reiterated Moscow's position, firmly condemning other countries for attempting to influence the course of events in Belarus.
Six days later, the two ministers held another set of phone talks, with both parties underlining the need for "an early normalization of the situation via national dialogue," as quoted by the Russian Foreign Ministry.
The meeting between Lavrov and Makei will take place as the European Union continues to up the pressure on Belarus with the threat of sanctions.
Earlier in August, EU foreign ministers agreed on the need to slap sanctions on the Belarusian authorities in relation to the result of the August 9 election, which Brussels has not recognized.
Both Moscow and Minsk have criticized the EU's plans to threaten the Belarusian government with punitive measures. On August 21, Makei said that any sanctions would be counterproductive, adding that the Belarusian government has overcome similar measures in the past.
Four days later, Lavrov told the US deputy secretary of state Stephen Biegun that the international community's attempts to pressurize Belarus with sanctions were inadmissible and undermined the potential for the Belarusian government and opposition to hold dialogue.
The EU's foreign ministers held an informal meeting in Berlin on Thursday to discuss the ongoing situation in Belarus. The bloc's foreign policy chief Josep Borrell later announced that plans were in the works to sanction approximately 20 Belarusian officials.
The Baltic states have led the way in condemning the Belarusian authorities for the current situation. On Monday, Latvian Foreign Minister Edgars Rinkevics announced on Twitter that the country has imposed a travel ban on 30 Belarusian citizens, including President Lukashenko, who are deemed to be "responsible for election fraud and violence against peaceful demonstrations."
The authorities in Lithuania, where opposition leader Svetlana Tikhanovskaya is currently based after fleeing Belarus following the election, as well as Estonia, also announced similar travel bans on Belarusian officials.
Belarusian Foreign Ministry spokesman Anatoly Glaz told Sputnik on Monday that Minsk will be forced to respond to these punitive measures.
Lavrov, who has also rejected the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe's calls for forced mediation between the government and people of Belarus, on Tuesday once again criticized the European Union's attempts to put pressure on Belarus, expressing his belief that the situation can be resolved internally.
CONSTITUTION, COVID-19 RESPONSE COULD ALSO FEATURE ON AGENDA
Alongside the ongoing protests in Belarus, several other major issues may feature on Wednesday's agenda.
Speaking on Tuesday, Lavrov said that the constitutional reforms proposed by President Lukashenko would help establish a dialogue between the government and the Belarusian population, which will be essential in stabilizing the current political situation.
The Belarusian state-run news agency Belta announced on Monday that a draft copy of the updated Belarusian constitution, which includes legal reforms, will be submitted for public consultation before a referendum.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on the same day that Moscow stands ready to share its experience of implementing constitutional amendments with Minsk, following the recent referendum held in Russia.
The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic may also feature on the agenda, particularly as the Russian and Belarusian authorities have agreed to develop a gradual plan to resume travel between the two countries, according to the Russian Ministry of Transport on Tuesday.
The Belarusian Ministry of Health has also recently announced plans to conduct clinical trials of the Russian vaccine against the coronavirus disease. President Lukashenko has previously said that he trusts the vaccine, which has been produced by Russia's Gamaleya Research Institute.
PLANS IN WORKS FOR PUTIN, LUKASHENKO MEETING
In addition to the meeting of Makei and Lavrov, Russian President Vladimir Putin and his Belarusian counterpart Alexander Lukashenko are also planning to hold face-to-face talks.
The Kremlin's press department said on Sunday that the two leaders had agreed during phone talks to meet in person, although Russian presidential spokesman Dmitry Peskov told Sputnik on the same day that there was currently no specific date for the proposed meeting.
During an interview with the Rossiya 1 broadcaster on Saturday, Putin said that Russia recognizes the legitimacy of the August 9 Belarusian presidential election, which saw Lukashenko win with more than 80 percent of the vote and Tikhanovskaya finish in second place with roughly 10 percent.
In a separate interview that aired on Thursday, the president said that the situation in Belarus was stabilizing, adding that a reserve of Russian law enforcement officers had been formed at Minsk's request to provide assistance if required.
Putin has already voiced his concern over foreign attempts to meddle in Belarus's domestic affairs to the European Council president Charles Michel, during talks on August 18.
PROTESTS CONTINUE THROUGHOUT BELARUS
Widespread protests, which began as the preliminary election results were announced on August 9, are continuing to take place across Belarus. Over the past weekend, dozens of women took part in a rally in downtown Minsk and two soccer players from the Krumkachy Minsk Football Club were detained during demonstrations on Sunday before they were eventually released.
Amid the public unrest, a new political party, Vmeste (Together), was founded on Tuesday by the campaign team of imprisoned politician Viktor Babariko. The party said in a message on its official Telegram channel that it supports the program of Svetlana Tikhanovskaya and will work within the Opposition Coordination Council.
Since the start of the protests, more than 6,700 people have been detained and hundreds of people, including 150 law enforcement officers, have suffered injuries.
According to the Belarusian Interior Ministry, three people have died in the post-election protests to date.
