Lifting sanctions on potassium transit will be lifeline for Lukashenko

He said this on Espreso TV. 

“There is a danger that the West has resumed talk of lifting sanctions on potash transit, which is very dangerous. By the way, this could have been discussed in China during Lukashenko's visit. There was a leak that Ukraine did not want sanctions to be imposed on Lukashenko's regime. Now, under the guise of solving the problem of hunger, they are talking again about the project that the UN Secretary-General once proposed - to allow the transit of Ukrainian grain, potassium, etc. through Belarus. That is, to help those suffering from hunger in Africa and forget about the thousands of political prisoners in Belarus. This is very dangerous. It will be a lifeline for Lukashenko,” the Belarusian opposition leader emphasized.

Andrei Sannikov added that there is information that the Netherlands, Portugal, France, and Italy are involved, and these are quite powerful global players.

“If this does happen, it will primarily mean an increase in military pressure on Ukraine, prolongation of this war. Putin needs Lukashenko's regime for one purpose only - for military purposes. His salvation by the West is what both dictators dream of, especially Putin, who needs a stable military foothold now. He can continue to advance on Ukrainian territory in the south, but he will keep the country on its toes and prepare another invasion from the north as well. This is dangerous, and there could be a kind of triangle of withdrawal from sanctions and the use of the possible lifting of sanctions against the Lukashenko regime to pump all cargo from Russia and China,” Sannikov explained.

• On January 12, the European Commission commented on reports that the EU had allegedly decided not to impose sanctions on Belarus along with Russia at Ukraine's request.

• On January 26, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe stated that the leadership of both Russia and Belarus should be held accountable for the aggression in Ukraine.

• On January 27, the European Union proposed to impose a new package of sanctions on Belarus for its support of Russia's aggression against Ukraine.