Czech Republic expels Belarussian diplomat

Czech Foreign Ministry has expelled a Belarussian diplomat from the Czech Republic, reacting to the expulsion of Czech diplomat Pavel Krivohlavy from Belarus, Foreign Ministry spokesman Vit Kolar said Friday.

Moreover, it has summoned the head of the Czech diplomatic office in Minsk for consultations in Prague, Kolar said.

According to the information from the webpage of the Belarussian Interior Ministry, the Belarussian police detained Krivohlavy on Wednesday. At the time of his arrest, he was allegedly drinking alcohol with a secondary school student, aged 16,in one of the Minsk cafes.

The Belarus Foreign Ministry has reacted to the expulsion of the Belarussian diplomat from Prague by the statement that Czech authorities erroneously understood the principle of reciprocity.

The Czech Foreign Ministry is of the view that Belarussian authorities proceeded in contradiction with international law as they did not respect his diplomatic immunity, Kolar said.

Moreover, the diplomat did not commit any criminal act, Kolar said, "It is obvious from the account of the affair that nothing had happened."

The Belarussian Foreign Ministry said on its webpage that it summoned Vladimir Lukastik from the Czech mission on Friday. He was handed a diplomatic note saying that Krivohlavy was declared a persona non grata in Belarus. The Czech diplomat must leave the country within 24 hours. Lukastik refused to elaborate on the case.

Source: Xinhua