Belarusian Foreign Minister Vladimir Makei died at the age of 64, according to the news of BelTA, the Belarusian state agency, citing the agency’s press secretary, Anatoly Glaz.
“She died suddenly a few hours ago … Nothing was foreseen. “Yesterday, we were discussing the plans for the week… It’s a great loss for all of us,” he said.
The causes and circumstances of the diplomat’s death were not specified. According to the Belarusian edition of Nasha Niva, Makei suffered a heart attack. This happened at her home in the village of Drozdy, and Makei didn’t go to the doctors on time as she “didn’t take her condition seriously”. There is no official confirmation of this information.
Russian Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova said Moscow was “shocked by the news of the death” of Vladimir Makei.
The Russian Embassy in Belarus also expressed its condolences, stating that Makei “has made a great contribution to the further strengthening of Russian-Belarusian relations, the construction of the Union State and its progressive development.”
As a well-known professional and sincere patriot of his country, he firmly and effectively defended the interests of the Republic of Belarus on international platforms. “This is a heavy and irreparable loss,” he said.
The EU Delegation to Belarus also expressed its condolences.
“Sincere condolences. Our thoughts are with Minister Makei’s family, colleagues and friends at this difficult time for them,” he said.
Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko also expressed his condolences to Makei’s family and relatives.
last meeting
The website of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Belarus states that the minister had his last meeting with Archbishop Ante Jozich, Apostolic Nuncio (diplomat of the Holy See), on November 25.
At the meeting held on the occasion of the 30th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between Belarus and the Vatican, the parties reaffirmed their desire to “intensify cooperation in various fields, as well as strengthen interreligious dialogue”.
For Monday, November 28, Makei had scheduled a meeting with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov. The head of the Russian Ministry of Foreign Affairs is expected to arrive in Minsk on November 27-28.
Life path and career
Vladimir Makei was born in 1958 in the village of Nekrashevichi in the Grodno region. He graduated from the Minsk State Pedagogical Institute in 1980 and from the Diplomatic Academy of the Austrian Ministry of Foreign Affairs in 1993. In the 1990s, he held various positions in the Belarusian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, such as second secretary of the ministry secretariat, deputy head of the State Protocol Service, representing the country in the Council of Europe and serving as a consultant. To the Belarusian embassy in France.
From 2000 to 2008 he worked as an assistant to the President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko, and in 2008 he headed the presidential administration and led it for four years.
He became Minister of Foreign Affairs in 2012 and held that post for a little over 10 years. Makei is married and has three children: sons Vitaly and Artem and daughter Maria.
Makei evaluated the relations between Belarus and Russia positively. “There are the closest friendly fraternal relations between our countries. This is not a bullying, not a statement for the sake of an explanation. That’s right,” he said in 2017.
Following the 2020 presidential election in Belarus, Makei admitted they were not going “perfectly”. Commenting on the mass protests that began after the election results were announced, the head of the department demanded the resignation of all Foreign Ministry employees who did not agree with Lukashenka’s policies.
Makei also said that after the rallies in the country started, his colleague from the European Union suggested to him “to go to the people” via SMS. “That’s exactly what some of the opponents here said: it’ll be like a domino effect if you move. Other members of the government will follow you. And then the power will collapse,” he said.
Makei has been under EU sanctions since 2010 and Canadian sanctions since June 2022. When sanctions were imposed on Belarus by the EU in March 2022, Makei said they were “aimed to completely destroy the sovereignty and independence of Belarus, to undermine its state.”
According to the BBC Russian Service, Makei took an active role in negotiations between Belarus and Western countries during the 2021 migration crisis. In addition, the diplomat helped organize negotiations between Russia and Ukraine after the outbreak of hostilities in late February.
Source: Gazeta
Barbara Dickson is a seasoned writer for “Social Bites”. She keeps readers informed on the latest news and trends, providing in-depth coverage and analysis on a variety of topics.