Sweden to open Embassy in Minsk
Towards the end of the year Sweden will open an Embassy in Minsk, the capital of Belarus.
Why an Embassy in Minsk?
An Embassy in Minsk will make Sweden better able to follow political developments in the country. It will be simpler to draw on and develop contacts with the Belarus authorities, other embassies and offices of international organisations, the political opposition and civil society.
What is the Embassy going to do?
The main role of the Embassy will be to follow political developments and increase contacts with Belarus society. In addition, the Embassy will work to increase the cultural exchange between Sweden and Belarus and contacts with Swedish business. Another important task will be to follow and support contributions in development cooperation with Belarus. This year Swedish development assistance amounts to some SEK 70 million, making Sweden one of the largest single donors to the country.
When, where and how?
When the Embassy opens towards the end of 2008, it will have four staff posted from the Ministry for Foreign Affairs (including the Ambassador), one staff member posted from Sida and locally engaged employees.
For a transitional period the Embassy will be housed in temporary premises and will therefore be unable to issue passports or visas. For the time being visas will be handled in the same way as at present by the Honorary Consulate in Minsk. The Embassy in Moscow will continue to be responsible for passport matters for Swedish citizens.
