President of Belarus said that western countries threatened him with sanctions in case of recognition of Abkhazia and South Ossetia regions. Aleksandr Lukashenko said that he had discussed this issue with Russia although official Moscow had not pressured him.
According to him, in 2008, Javier Solana, former High Representative for the Common Foreign and Security Policy, Secretary General of the Council of the EU, had urged him for non-recognition of South Ossetia’s independence. Leader of Belarus recalled the response of Solana that Belarus would be immediately cut off from Swift international system.
Lukashenko then applied to former president of Russia Dmitry Medvedev and asked him for compensation of damage in case of recognition of Georgia’s occupied territories. However, Medvedev refused to negotiate the issue.