Lithuania rejects lifting Belarus sanctions over possible US fertiliser deal

Lithuania has not been informed about a possible major US deal to buy fertiliser from Belarus and sees no reason to lift sanctions against Minsk, LRT reported, citing Seimas Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Remigijus Motuzas.

“We have no reason today to lift sanctions against Belarus. This is not only Lithuania’s position, but also the common position of the European Union. These sanctions remain in force until the end of February,” Motuzas, a Social Democrat, told BNS on Monday.

He said Lithuania could not influence any US decision or agreement on buying Belarusian fertiliser.

“Time will show how the United States manages to reach an agreement on buying fertiliser from Belarus,” Motuzas said.

He stressed that Lithuania’s position on Belarus’s authoritarian regime had not changed. Vilnius continues to regard Belarus as a non-democratic state and its president as not democratically elected, he said.

Although some political prisoners have been released, Motuzas said, nothing had fundamentally changed in Belarus. The opposition continues to be ignored and is largely unable to operate in the country. Many opposition figures have left Belarus, while others who are active in public life or on social media have been imprisoned, he said.

Motuzas also noted that Minsk continued to support Russia’s war against Ukraine and that Lithuania and other neighbouring countries continued to face various hybrid attacks from Belarus.

He said it was too early to comment in detail on the possible US Belarus deal, adding that the initiative could be aimed at the longer term.

US President Donald Trump said on Monday that Washington was working on a major agreement to buy fertiliser from Belarus. He said the deal would allow US companies to pay less for fertiliser than they currently do when buying it from Canada.

The United States imports most of the fertiliser it uses, mainly from Canada. Prices have risen sharply worldwide since Russia invaded Ukraine.

The United States lifted sanctions imposed earlier this decade on Belarusian fertiliser this year. However, it still could not import the products because of restrictions on the transit of goods from Belarus.

Before the US sanctions were imposed, Belarusian fertiliser was transported through the port of Klaipėda. Senior Lithuanian officials have remained sceptical about resuming the transit, citing continuing EU sanctions on fertiliser and an unwillingness to provide revenue opportunities to companies linked to the Belarusian regime.

Foreign Minister Kęstutis Budrys told BNS last week that Lithuania’s position differed from that of the United States on easing sanctions against Belarus, but he did not mention fertiliser.

Foreign media reported earlier this year that US officials had asked Lithuania, Poland and Ukraine to lift sanctions on Belarusian potash fertiliser to allow the product to transit their territories.