MINSK, 9 March (BelTA) – The Belarusian Ministry of Foreign Affairs has suggested that Consul of the Consulate General of Poland in Brest Jerzy Timofiejuk should leave Belarus due to a blatant violation of the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations, the ministry's representatives told BelTA.
According to the source, Polish Charge d'Affaires in Belarus Marcin Wojciechowski was summoned to the Belarusian Ministry of Foreign Affairs on 9 March. The Belarusian side protested the participation of Consul of the Consulate General of Poland in Brest Jerzy Timofiejuk in an unofficial event timed to the “day of the cursed soldiers”. The event took place in Brest on 28 February and involved representatives of non-governmental and youth organizations with ties to Poland.
The Belarusian Ministry of Foreign Affairs stated that Belarus' stance with regard to the “cursed soldiers” and their typical representatives – Bury's gang – remains unchanged. Poland had been repeatedly informed about the stance. “Glorification of military criminals, cynical justification of the genocide of the Belarusian nation, most blatant violations of Poland's obligations with regard to the prevention of Nazism glorification are absolutely unacceptable for us. The ‘cursed soldiers' led by Romuald [Bury] Rajs committed crimes in places densely populated by Belarusians and thus positioned themselves on par with German Nazi forces. Memory of the burned down villages, hundreds of civilians that were murdered and maimed is sacred for our country. Both Belarus and Poland paid a colossal price for their survival during that dreadful war,” the Belarusian Ministry of Foreign Affairs said.
The Belarusian side does not doubt and has never doubted the possibility and importance of interaction between diplomats and their own diasporas. “Nevertheless, in our country the stirring of racial, nationalistic, religious or other kinds of strife or discord and Nazism rehabilitation are classified as criminal offences,” the source reminded. “By participating in that event Poland's representative blatantly violated norms of the international law, in particular, the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations.”
The Polish side was handed a note, which suggests that Consul of the Consulate General of Poland in Brest Jerzy Timofiejuk should leave Belarus' territory.
