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Lukashenko about sanctions from Baltic states: They were told to start yapping

BARANOVICHI, 1 September (BelTA) – Belarus will make economic decisions in response to sanctions enforced by the Baltic states, BelTA learned from Belarus President Aleksandr Lukashenko in Baranovichi, Brest Oblast on 1 September.

According to the head of state, more mature countries understand that they should not seek quarrels with Belarus because it can close borders near Brest and Grodno and then German freight will not be able to so easily go to the East. This is why weaker Baltic states were ordered to make a stand against Belarus. “They were told to attack, so they started yapping from under the fence. It is my evaluation,” Aleksandr Lukashenko said.

The president stressed that Baltic states should be more careful in relations with Belarus because their own nations may see this attitude to the neighboring country in a different light. “They should explain to their own people how they have reformed the country in a way that has more than halved the population in comparison with Soviet times. This is why they should be more careful in attacking Lukashenko and Belarus because their own people may hit them so hard they will have no teeth left,” he is convinced.

Aleksandr Lukashenko added that the Belarusian government is working out measures in response to the sanctions. “We are not going to fight for access over there. We will simply try to resolve the problem by economic leverage. They say it may be more expensive for Belarus [to reroute Belarusian cargoes from Baltic ports to Russia]. Certainly, we will lose a bit of profit. But we can strike a deal with Russians on tariffs and they will still reap a benefit due to the sheer volume of transshipment of our cargoes,” Aleksandr Lukashenko noted.

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