In a resolution adopted on Wednesday, the European Parliament has officially recognized Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko as an “accomplice” to Russia’s military aggression and war crimes in Ukraine.
The resolution strongly condemns Minsk’s involvement in Russia’s unjustified, illegal, and unprovoked war against Ukraine.
This involvement includes the stationing and training of Russian troops in Belarus, which served as a base for Russia’s full-scale invasion in February 2022.
“By enabling Russia’s unjustified war of aggression against Ukraine, the Lukashenko regime has become complicit in the crimes committed by Russia, and therefore bears responsibility for the destruction and damage inflicted upon Ukraine,” states the resolution.
Additionally, Lukashenko is accused of participating in the illegal transfer of over 2,000 Ukrainian children, including orphans, to recreational camps in Belarus.
In March, the International Criminal Court (ICC) issued an arrest warrant for Russian President Vladimir Putin and his children’s rights commissioner Maria Lvova-Belova due to the illegal deportation of Ukrainian children.
According to the European Parliament’s resolution, the children are subjected to Russification and indoctrination, thereby holding the Belarusian leader accountable for potential crimes against humanity, along with Putin and Lvova-Belova.
The resolution calls upon the ICC to consider issuing a similar international warrant for Lukashenko’s arrest and urges the EU to impose the same sanctions on Belarus as it currently applies to Russia.
On Friday, Lukashenko is set to meet with Putin to discuss regional issues and economic cooperation.
