„I hope that Lithuania agrees to a bilateral dialogue at the level of deputy foreign ministers. We need to put an end to the issues that are hindering life on both sides,“ Coale said in an interview with the website.
He also noted that he believes opportunities should be created to transport potash fertilisers through Lithuania.
„Potash fertilisers from Belarus should travel through Lithuania, which would open up Europe to them—all the way to the United States,“ said the U.S. Special Envoy.
Coale also noted that during his visit to Belarus, he urged President Alexander Lukashenko to release the Lithuanian trucks stranded there.
„Yes, I urged him to do so, and he did. Initially, the discussion focused on the large sums of money to be released per truck. Still, he significantly reduced that amount, so I believe this issue has also been resolved,“ Coale said in an interview.
U.S. Special Envoy John Coale, who participated in negotiations in Minsk last week, announced that Washington is lifting sanctions against the Belarusian bank Belinvestbank and the Development Bank, as well as the country’s Ministry of Finance and fertiliser companies, including Belaruskalij. In turn, the regime released some political prisoners.
ELTA notes that last December, the U.S. Special Envoy to Belarus announced that the United States was lifting sanctions on Belarusian potash exports. He also noted that discussions regarding sanctions would continue.
The administration of former U.S. President Joe Biden imposed sanctions on Belarusian potash fertilisers in 2021—a year after the Belarusian presidential election, which Alexander Lukashenko illegally won.
In 2022, the EU also imposed sanctions on Belarusian fertilisers. At that time, the Lithuanian state-owned company Lietuvos Geležinkeliai terminated the contract for the transit of fertiliser in accordance with a 2022 government decision stating that Belaruskalij poses a threat to national security. Until then, transit was supposed to continue until the end of 2023.