John Cole said that the US asked Citibank to unfreeze the $43–44 million that Lukashenko mentioned

During the talks with Lukashenko, Cole, quoted by the Belarusian agency BELTA, said: “I fully and absolutely support your demands. In fact, you are absolutely right. These funds must be unfrozen and returned”. He added that the American side had asked Citibank to unfreeze the funds and is now working out a mechanism for how to do it.

Cole promised to tell Lukashenko as soon as the bank gives a specific answer. Lukashenko thanked him for the American side’s close attention to his remarks.

On September 11, Lukashenko told journalists that about $43–44 million were stuck in Citibank — money that had been transferred to him by a company cooperating with Belarus. He then called the situation “a disgrace for the US” and added that the government had reported it to him in writing.

Cole’s talks with Lukashenko were not the special envoy’s first contact with the Belarusian authorities. Earlier, he invited Lukashenko to the US and conveyed that Donald Trump treats him with respect and counts him among his friends among world leaders.

Sources

• Material: theins.ru