Further blockade of Belarusian trade to come if repression persists says PM

Poland is ready to step up trade restrictions on Belarus if Minsk continues its policy of repression, Mateusz Morawiecki, Poland’s prime minister has said.

"We are closing additional border crossings or at least becoming more restrictive," Morawiecki told the private Polish broadcaster RMF FM on Saturday. "We are reacting 'tit for tat' when it comes to the actions of (Belarusian President Alexander – PAP) Lukashenko, and he is aware of this."

"I recently met in Poland with the wife of Ales Bialiatski, a Nobel Prize winner, who told me how brutal Lukashenko is with all those who in the slightest way express their opposition to his brutal regime," he continued. "Poland must react here."

The prime minister also announced that he would discuss with Lithuania the issue of its not adhering to EU sanctions against Belarus for over the past two months now. "Sometimes it is worth taking one step back in order to take three steps forward," he added.

Belarus is "an important transfer point for Russian goods and worth blocking," he concluded.