EU envoys can return to Belarus

European ambassadors recalled from Belarus can return, provided the European Union does not hit the country with new sanctions, Belarusian Foreign Minister Sergei Martynov said on Sunday. “We don’t mind [envoys’ return]. But, of course, we don’t want them to be involved in behind-the-scenes machinations that harm our relations,” Martynov said on national television. “Tough and unjust” European sanctions only hinder democratic reforms in Belarus, Martynov added. Relations between the EU and the government of authoritarian President Alexander Lukashenko have been frosty for years, but reached a new low in February, when the European Union introduced a new round of sanctions against Belarus, where more than 200 officials are currently blacklisted for EU entry. Belarus recalled its ambassadors from Brussels and Poland at the time and demanded Polish and EU envoys to head back to their respective homes “for consultations.” Ambassadors of all 27 EU members pulled out of Belarus in solidarity with their colleagues.