Estonian minister: Free world has not forgotten Belarus
04.03.2008
TALLINN, Mar 04, BNS - Speaking at a congress in Tallinn on Tuesday of the communities of Belarusians living in Europe and the United States, Estonian Foreign Minister Urmas Paet said that the free world has not forgotten Belarus.
The Estonian minister expressed the hope that the congress will lay out the basis for good cooperation between NGOs in Belarus and beyond the country's borders.
That the congress is taking place shows that Belarusians have not lost hope for a democratic Belarus and are ready to work in the name of it, said Paet.
The minister recalled the role of members of Estonia's exile community in the restoration of Estonia's independence.
"Estonia knows first-hand what role the dispora can play in shaping the future of one's homeland," he said.
Just like many Belarusians, the whole Europe, including Estonia, wishes to see the development of a free and democratic Belarus, Paet said.
"Let me assure you that Belarus, described as being "the last dictatorship of Europe," has not been neglected or forgotten by the free world," Paet said.
The first congress of Belarusians living in Europe and the United States kicked off in Tallinn on Saturday.
Tallinn newsroom, +372 610 8861, sise@bns.ee
 
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