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Belarus Relations with Russian Likely to Curb Minsk's View

February 10, 2006

Belarus has been supportive of Iran's nuclear power program, and indeed Belarusian companies have some contracts at the Bushehr site (though these will soon be completed). Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko plans to visit Iran in the near future, while various Iranian officials have recently visited Belarus. The two nations have been discussing the expansion of their commercial relations and other bilateral ties. However, Belarus' special relationship with Russia, and its economic dependence on the latter, means that Minsk is unlikely to undercut any Russian proposals relating to the current impasse. Thus, Belarusian policy, while generally supportive of Iran, will ultimately follow closer to the line taken by Moscow than that of Tehran. This was apparent at the special IAEA Board of Governors meeting, at which Belarus, a member of the board, ultimately chose to abstain from the vote on whether to send the issue of Iran's nuclear program to the UN Security Council.

Related statements and report from Belarusian source:

  • Belarusian statement at the IAEA General Conference, September 2005:

    "Belarus expresses its support to the Agency's impartial position and highly professional activities in dealing with the Iranian problem, which have allowed to settle unclear technical issues. We note as well the effort of the Iranian side to clarify them. We urge Iran to co-operate with the Agency in the future in spirit of maximal transparency with a view to facilitate elimination of any misunderstanding in such a sensitive issue. We consider it is necessary to stress that the Iranian problem needs to be solved within the frames of the international law but not on the ground of the politically motivated assessments."

  • Statement by Belarusian Foreign Minister, September 19, 2005:

    "Belarus fully recognizes and supports Iran's right to develop and use peaceful nuclear technologies by abiding to the nuclear weapons' nonproliferation regime, Belarusian Foreign Minister Syarhey Martynaw said during his talks with Iranian Foreign Minister Manuchehr Mottaki that took place on 19 September in New York within the framework of the 60th session of the UN General Assembly." [Source: Belapan news agency, September 20, 2005; in BBC Worldwide Monitoring]

  • Statement by Iranian official meeting with Belarusian National Assembly member, December 16, 2005:

    Iran's parliamentary speaker Gholam Ali Haddad-Adel said at a meeting with the chairman of the Belarusian National Assembly's Chamber of Representatives, Vladimir Konoplyov, that the two countries need to step up their cooperation in withstanding outside pressure, Interfax reported. The Iranian official stated that: "There are various groundless complaints against [Belarus], and we are subject to pressure as well. I believe that independent countries like Belarus and Iran can counter intrigues against them more effectively through joint efforts," the Iranian deputy said. [Source: "Iran, Belarus to Combine Forces Against Western Pressure," MosNews, December 16, 2005, <http://www.mosnews.com/news/2005/12/16/iranbelarus.shtml>.]


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