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Representative of EU`s European External Action Service arriving in Minsk

Gunnar Wiegand, the European External Action Service`s director for Russia, the Eastern Partnership, Central Asia, Regional Cooperation and the OSCE, will arrive in Minsk later on Tuesday for a two-day visit.

Mr. Wiegand`s working visit "will be mainly focused on the Dialogue on Modernisation and Mr Wiegand will meet all the interested parties to speak about ways this Dialogue can develop in the future," the European Union`s Delegation to Belarus told BelaPAN.

Launched at the end of March 2012, the EU`s program called European Dialogue on Modernization with Belarus is a multi-stakeholder exchange of views and ideas between the EU and representatives of Belarus’ civil society and political opposition on necessary reforms for the modernization of Belarus and on the related potential development of relations with the EU, as well as possible EU support in this regard. The dialogue will focus on four key areas for EU-Belarus relations: political reform, reform of the judiciary and person-to-person contacts, economic and sector policy issues, and trade and market reform.

The Belarusian government has so far ignored invitations to get involved in the program, which was designed specifically for Belarus.

Mr. Wiegand last visited Belarus in December 2012. During the visit, he had a meeting with Belarusian Foreign Minister Uladzimir Makey. The ministry`s press office then reported, without elaborating, that Messrs. Makey and Wiegand “discussed a range of issues concerning the current state of the relationship between Belarus and the EU and ways of its normalization.