Belarus warns Poland of possible damage to bilateral relations

MINSK, February 17 (Itar-Tass) - Belarussian Foreign Ministry is
concerned by "the unfolding anti-Belarussian campaign in Poland, as it can
do a serious damage to the development of bilateral relations," Andrei
Popov, the ministry's press secretary said Tuesday.
"Statements on the plans to introduce travel visa sanctions against
Belarusian citizens that have been aired in Poland in the past few days,
as well as the calls for restrictive measures, including the ones of
economic nature, don't facilitate the efforts to lift the artificial
tensions in Belarussian-Polish relations and contravene international
law," he said.
Relations between the two countries have deteriorated over the
situation with the Union of Poles in Belarus, a public association of
ethnic Poles living in Belarus that split in two in 2005. One part of it
is officially registered and the other part is not.
The most recent conflict broke out due to a litigation focusing on the
Polish Second Home -- a building in the village of Ivenets in the Minsk
region. The Second Home is managed by the breakaway unofficial part of the
association.
As a result of the conflict, some of the organization's activists were
detained and its leader, Anzelika Boris was issued a heavy fine.
The events triggered a harsh reaction from Warsaw.
"Reports in the Polish media distorting reality and facts mislead the
public opinion in Poland and affect the climate of Belarussian-Polish
relations," Popov said.
"Belarussian legislation contains provisions guaranteeing the rights
of ethnic minorities and this fully applies to the Polish ethnic
minority," he said.
Popov indicated that the Belarussian side is ready to make efforts
together with the Polish side "towards maintaining the level of bilateral
relations that has been achieved and to develop them further on the basis
of mutual respect and non-interference in each other's internal affairs."
-0-kle