MINSK, 10 November (BelTA) - Two British diplomats have been declared 'persona non grata' in Belarus, BelTA learned from the state ONT TV channel.
According to the Belarusian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the pair were engaged in activities of a 'destructive nature'. “Due to non-compatibility of the activity with the status of a diplomat the Belarusian Ministry of Foreign Affairs took a decision to declare the two diplomats of the UK Embassy in Belarus ‘persona non grata' on 8 November 2020,” Anatoly Glaz, Head of the Information and Digital Diplomacy Office, Press Secretary of the Belarusian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, said. The two British diplomats are Defense Attache of the UK embassy in Belarus Timothy Wight-Boycott and Deputy Head of the UK Mission to Belarus Lisa Thumwood.
According to the representative of the Belarusian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the decision is a forced measure. “The decision was taken by the Belarusian side solely because of the confirmed destructive nature of the activities of the said persons. By this decision, the Belarusian side in no way closes the doors for dialogue with our British colleagues and leaves them open,” Anatoly Glaz said.
The two diplomats have already left Belarus.
