Projects launched in Belarus were continued, Gediminas Rainys, director general of the executive directorate of the Lithuanian Idustrialists' Confederation, told the daily.
“The projects that have been launched are being continued. However, investors who are thinking about future plans consider where they should invest – either in Ukraine, Russia or Belarus. They assess all risks and investment flows may bypass Belarus,” he said.
EU sanctions against Minsk will be reviewed after the general elections due in Belarus in September.
“We have not suffered any harm so far. In fact the sanctions involve the restrictions on trips by several hundreds of Belorussian officials to the EU and on the activities of several dozens of companies closely related with individual Belarus officials. As far as we know, those companies do not maintain any strong ties with Lithuania’s businesses. Full embargo is now only applied on one group of goods, which is weapons,” Rainys said.
According to Rainys, the industrialists have no right to interfere and do not interfere in political decision-making, but they ask to assess potential consequences, including effects on the economy, relations, general public, very carefully.
Approximately 500 Lithuanian-owned companies are active in Belarus.
2012 06 26
EU sanctions against Belorussian companies have not harmed Lithuanian businesses
Lithuania’s companies have not yet sustained any significant losses due to operational restrictions applied to several dozens of Belorussian companies but statements from both countries, which are getting ever harsher, may prompt the investors to revise their plans in the neighboring country, the Lietuvos Žinios daily reports.
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