Lithuanian MP sees potential for closer ties with Belarus but warns against rushing

Lithuanian lawmaker Ruslanas Baranovas has suggested that dialogue with Belarus could be possible but cautioned against lifting sanctions prematurely, reports LRT.

Speaking on LRT’s Dienos tema programme, Baranovas, a member of the Seimas Foreign Affairs Committee, acknowledged discussions with Belarusian opposition groups about engaging with Alexander Lukashenko’s regime. However, he stressed that sanctions remain a “last resort” tool and should not be eased without tangible changes in Minsk.

“Compared to today’s realities, the transit of potash fertilizers is like Lithuania’s Strait of Hormuz—a final lever we can use to push Europe toward lifting sanctions,” Baranovas said. “But only when we see real results: an end to repression or similar changes in Belarus.”

Europarliamentarian Petras Auštrevičius echoed skepticism, noting that while 500 political prisoners were released, new arrests followed. “Belarus hasn’t changed its behavior—it still supports Russia’s aggression, with its defense industry working almost entirely for Russia,” he said. “Believing we’ve achieved our goal and can now relax sanctions would be a mistake.”

The debate follows calls from US envoy John Coale for Lithuania to reopen its borders to Belarusian fertilizer transit and hold high-level talks with Minsk. Opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, currently in Vilnius, has urged Washington not to pressure the EU—particularly Lithuania—to lift sanctions.

Auštrevičius warned against prioritizing economic interests over security, citing the US-Ukraine grain deal as a cautionary example. “When economic interests dominate, core security issues get sidelined,” he said. “We risk entering a barter system where one side secures fertilizer imports while everything else stays the same—and we’re left exposed.”