Belarus and the European Union have completed negotiations on readmission and visa facilitation agreements. The parties need only to agree on the document signing procedure, TUT.BY learned from an informed sources in official Brussels.
In the case of another important document – Partnership Priorities – Brussels hopes to convince Lithuania, whose position regarding the Belarusian NPP prevents it from signing the document, that Belarus fulfills all the procedures recommended by the European Union. We are convinced that it will be easier to talk with Lithuania, if Belarus adopts the National Action Plan on Nuclear Safety, the EU believes.
The EU emphasizes that Belarus has conducted a series of stress tests recommended by the EU and adopted recommendations made by European lawmakers.
“The next step we expect is the adoption by Belarus of the National Action Plan for the introduction of recommendations that have been made on nuclear safety issues. We will try to convey to Lithuania the fact that Belarus has agreed to stress tests, that it will submit a National Action Plan, and we will try to convey to all EU member states that Belarus will introduce the recommendations that the EU has given it. But we will have many more opportunities to defend the signing of the Partnership Priorities if Belarus has a National Action Plan,” the EU underlines.
Even during the events linked to the 10th anniversary of the Eastern Partnership in Brussels Uladzimir Makey expressed hope that the agreement on visa facilitation will be signed before the end of the year. the European Commissioner Johannes Hahn noted that the negotiations on this document are “more or less” completed. After the agreement enters into force, Schengen visas should go down in price to 35 euros (when issued at the embassy), the number of free and long-term visas will increase.
