Minsk’s muddled media clampdown could jeopardize warming of relations with the West.
Andrei Yahorau: Paleckis’ report will provoke debate on future EU policy towards Belarus
Considering the fact that European Union has no integral strategy towards Belarus, the report prepared by Lithuanian MEP sounds like a nice plan.
Such an opinion in the talk with the EuroBelarus Information Service shared Andrei Yahorau, political scientist and the Head of the Centre for European Transformation.
Let us recall that the debate on Paleckis’ report run on September 11 in the European Parliament in Strasbourg. After the discussion Justas Paleckis predicted that his report would be approved during the voting procedure, saying that all political groups in the European Parliament had reached consensus on the matter. “Something extraordinary should happen for it not to be approved,” he said.
Andrei Yahorau is also convinced that the document will be adopted without considerable change. “It means that European Parliament will suggest some construction of more integral policy towards Belarus,” the political scientist described the significance of the future decision.
The expert also recalled that this decision is advisory, not obligatory for the European Commission. “However, I think that this report will provoke further debate as to what measures to take regarding the situation in Belarus. Besides, it becomes possible to appeal to European Parliament and this report in case of some particular political actions, either correspondent or not with European Parliament’s recommendations. Thus, there has appeared more options for those who want to participate in development of EU policy towards Belarus,” Andrei Yahorau explained.
He also noted that the document itself doesn’t suggest any drastic change in European policy towards Belarus. On the one hand, the aim of the report is to increase the role of the civil society; still, the report provides for the possibility of cooperation with the Belarusan government, too.
“I.e. we can say that Paleckis’ report suggests a certain combination of nomenclature politics with involvement of loyal Belarusan officials and government to the dialog with the EU and public dialog, aimed at strengthening the role of the civil society,” noted the Head of the Centre for European Transformation.
According to him the report prepared by Lithuanian MEP sounds like a nice plan, especially if we take into account that European Union has no integral strategy towards Belarus. “The report prepared by Paleckis deserves appreciation,” summed up Andrei Yahorau.
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