Belarus Says Polish Embassy Is Spy Headquarters

State television broadcast accusations about Polish espionage (RFE/RL) 8 February 2006 -- The Belarusian counterintelligence service, the KGB, has accused the Polish Embassy in Minsk of spying.
In a program broadcast yesterday on Belarus state television, an unnamed KGB officer said that the Polish Embassy had become a headquarters for foreign secret services.


On the same program, a KGB spokesman said that foreign spies have stepped up their activities in Belarus ahead of the upcoming presidential elections. He said there was a concerted effort to "create scandals" that would undermine the country's stability.


Polish Embassy officials in Minsk criticized the report, which they said was aimed at creating a rift between Poland and Western countries.


President Alyaksandr Lukashenka is running for a third term in the 19 March election.


The Polish government has been among the most outspoken critics of Lukashenka's regime.


(Belapan, Interfax, dpa)


Video Roundtable On Belarus/Ukraine

Video Roundtable On Belarus/Ukraine


On December 8, 2005, RFE/RL and the Policy Association for an Open Society (PASOS) jointly conducted a roundtable discussion on issues relating to Belarus's post-Soviet transition. To view video of the roundtable, click here.

See also:

Belarus: Authorities 'Cleanse' Media Ahead Of 2006 Vote

Can Belarus's Opposition Unite To Challenge Lukashenka?

Belarus: The Slow-Boiling Dictatorship