Hungary’s foreign minister visits Belarus despite EU sanctions, talks about expanding ties

By YURAS KARMANAU
Associated Press

TALLINN, Estonia (AP) — Hungary’s top diplomat has visited Belarus for talks on expanding ties despite the European Union’s sanctions against the country. Hungarian Foreign Minister Péter Szijjártó declared Wednesday that “our position is clear: the fewer sanctions, the more cooperation!” The EU has slapped a sweeping array of sanctions on Belarus for the repression that followed mass protests fueled by the 2020 presidential election. The vote was widely seen by the opposition and the West as rigged. Belarus’ isolation further deepened after authoritarian President Alexander Lukashenko allowed Russian troops to use his country’s territory to launch a full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Belarusian opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya criticized Szijjártó’s visit as “unacceptable and immoral.”