Families of KGB prisoners meet with Catherine Ashton

• 12.01.2011, 12:52

The EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Catherina Ashton, met with Belarusian democrats in Brussels today.

The website charter97.org learnt this from Iryna Bahdanava, sister of arrested presidential candidate Andrei Sannikov.

As the EU foreign policy chief, Catherine Ashton, said, she wanted to meet with the Belarusian foreign minister only to look into his eyes and warn that the Belarusian government had only a few days and hours to free all arrested people and try to improve the relations with the EU. She added that in another case, sanctions would be imposed.

Baroness Ashton talked with Uladzimir Nyaklyaeu’s daughter, Eva, and Andrei Sannikov’s sister, Iryna, and assured them the EU would apply best efforts to free the Belarusian leaders and all political prisoners. Catherian Ashton said the EU hadn’t expected the Belarusian authorities to ignore all previously achieved arrangements and launch repressions against the civil society. The EU was determined to put an end to that, she added. The EU foreign policy chief assured that Europe would be open to the people of Belarus regardless any sanctions on the regime.

Iryna Bahdanava and Eva Nyaklyaeva handed Baroness Ashton the petition of Vyzvalenne civil initiative, uniting relatives of the KGB prisoners.