Germany and five central European countries called on Belarus on Tuesday to release all political prisoners and halt political repression.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel joined Austria and the four members of the Visegrad Group of countries — the Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia — in denouncing the government of President Alexander Lukashenko for rights abuses.
"We extend our resolute call on the authorities in Belarus to immediately release all political prisoners and to rehabilitate them," said Slovak Prime Minister Iveta Radicova, quoting from a declaration approved at a summit in Bratislava also attended by Merkel and Austrian Chancellor Werner Faymann.
"We demand to stop political repression and harassment of the opposition, independent media and civil society," she told a news conference after the summit, held to mark the Visegrad Group’s 20th anniversary.
Ukraine’s Prime Minister Mykola Azarov also attended the summit but did not sign the declaration.
The European Union reinstated a visa ban on Lukashenko and other officials last month in response to a violent crackdown on protest after a disputed December election.
Western governments have pressed Lukashenko to free scores of protesters held after the Dec. 19 vote, which the opposition and international monitors say was rigged.
The EU has also extended a list of people affected by an EU asset freeze, in place since 2006, to include those involved in the crackdown.
Central European countries with experience of Communist oppression have taken a leading role in the EU in support of the democratic opposition in Belarus.
Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk said Europeans would not forget the fate of the Belarus dissidents.
"I have a lot of experience with those sitting in jail today, many are my friends," he told the news conference. "It is important for them and for all Belarus citizens that we are not forgetting."
