MINSK. July 6 (Interfax) - Sanctions used as an instrument of pressure on a sovereign state are illegal and constitute an act of international blackmail, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko said at a meeting on countering sanctions on Tuesday.
"These decisions have nothing to do with the system of law. In fact, the use of restrictions as an instrument of pressure on a sovereign state is illegal and constitutes an act of international blackmail. Please note that documents of the United Nations and other international organizations condemn this kind of blackmail as an unacceptable measure," the Belarusian state-run news agency BelTA quoted Lukashenko as saying.
Sanctions remain a key topic as concerns media projects and a variety of political declarations and legal acts, Lukashenko said. "We should elaborate a strategy that will minimize their effect and will allow our further development. As I have said before: there should be no talk of a possible shortfall or a reduction in the pace or growth of our economy. This is out of the question. A war is on," he said.
The incident involving the landing of a Ryanair flight in Minsk is a formal pretext for sanctions, Lukashenko said. "Only those who are lazy fail to draw this conclusion," he said.