Lech WalesaFormer Polish president and Solidarity icon Lech Walesa announced he is ready to mediate in Belarus on the issue of the repressed Polish minority there.
The Nobel Peace Prize winner told Polish Radio Gdansk that he regrets that his concept of bringing Belarus closer to Europe did not come to fruition. According to Walesa, it is no wonder that president Aleksandr Lukashenka is turning his back now on both the European Union and Poland.
“Of course I am ready to do that and I think I would be able to assuage the situation, at least a little bit. I wanted Poland to join NATO and the European Union with both Belarus and Ukraine. Had Europe been more dedicated to the enlargement process from the very beginning, helping Belarus fulfill its EU aspirations, Lukashenka would have been a much bigger supporter of the EU now,” said Walesa.
Asked by Polish Radio Gdansk what Poland's authorities should do in such a case. Lech Walesa refused to provide the answer.
The European Union's foreign ministers are meeting on Monday to discuss the bloc's stand on the issue of Poles in Belarus. It is to be the first step towards evaluating the EU's policy towards Belarus.
The European Parliament is also meeting next week to adopt a resolution concerning the recent events in Belarus. The Head of the Polish Union in Belarus, Angelika Borys, and the country's opposition leader Aleksandr Milinkievitch are expected to attend the session in Brussels. (di/mmj)
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