Lithuania’s incoming government has softened its language on Belarus in its newly published program, dropping a blanket commitment to maintain Minsk’s international isolation while linking future pressure on its actions.
The program of Prime Minister-designate Mindaugas Sinkevičius’ government, registered in parliament on Friday, pledges to take “active steps to maintain the international isolation of Russia”.
That differs from the program of the outgoing government led by Inga Ruginienė, which committed to taking “active steps to maintain the international isolation of Russia and Belarus”.
Instead of calling for Belarus’s continued isolation as a general policy, the new program says Lithuania will strengthen “isolation and pressure” on Belarus if it continues supporting Russia’s war against Ukraine or carries out hybrid attacks against the European Union or Ukraine.
The incoming government’s program also adopts a different approach to Belarus’ Astravyets nuclear power plant.
