Belarus Advocates for Mutual Respectful Dialogue with UN

Belarus emphasizes the importance of constructive cooperation with the UN Human Rights Council based on equality and mutual respect. This was stated by Belarusian Permanent Representative to the UN Office in Geneva, Larisa Belskaya, during a discussion at the 60th session of the UN Human Rights Council.

The diplomat pointed out that Minsk does not recognize all country-specific mandates established within the Council at the initiative of a group of countries concerning Belarus.

"These mechanisms do not represent the voice of the Belarusian people but serve as the voice of those nations that annually fund this spectacle in the Council and bankroll so-called investigations. The pressure tactics and sanctions that a group of Western countries has been attempting to impose on Belarus for 30 years are ineffective. I call on the initiators of country-specific mandates on the human rights situation in Belarus at the HRC to cease fueling confrontation and fruitless debates that annually drain UN resources and the resources of your countries—resources that could instead be directed toward solving real problems faced by those in need," Belskaya stated.

Larisa Belskaya underscored that for the Belarusian people, sovereignty and independence are of utmost value. Despite ongoing distortions within the HRC in favor of non-consensus country-specific mechanisms, Belarus believes the Council has constructive potential. Member states are interested in cooperation, but only if politicization is avoided and if attempts to impose a narrow, one-size-fits-all approach—denying the unique national contexts—are rejected.