Estonia To Initiate Discussion Of Belarus Situation In UN Security Council - Minister

The political situation in Belarus, engulfed in violent protests following a controversial presidential election, should be included in the agenda of the upcoming UN Security Council meeting, Estonian Foreign Minister Urmas Reinsalu said on Wednesday

HELSINKI (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 12th August, 2020) The political situation in Belarus, engulfed in violent protests following a controversial presidential election, should be included in the agenda of the upcoming UN Security Council meeting, Estonian Foreign Minister Urmas Reinsalu said on Wednesday.

The UN Security Council is scheduled to have an open video teleconference meeting later in the day. Estonia is the council's non-permanent member for the 2020-2021 period.

"I would like to draw your attention to the political situation in Belarus and the importance of protecting human rights and political freedoms amid the coronavirus pandemic around the world. The Belarusian topic should certainly be included in the agenda of the UN Security Council meeting, since it is important both from the point of view of our region and our values," Reinsalu told Estonia's ERR broadcaster.

The Estonian Foreign Ministry summoned Belarusian Ambassador Viacheslav Kachanov on Tuesday to urge Minsk to immediately stop the use of force against protesters.

People took to the streets in the Belarusian capital of Minsk and many other cities in the days following the Sunday presidential election that saw the country's incumbent president Aleksander Lukashenko reelected for a sixth consecutive term atop 26 years of presidency.

Police used water cannons, stun grenades and rubber bullets to disperse the protesters. Thousands of people were arrested and many journalists, both local and foreign, went missing. internet access was reportedly cut in Minsk and other Belarusian cities.