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The Belarusian opposition leader Maria Kolesnikova
Photo: Sergei Bobylev / imago images / ITAR-TASS
Following the alleged arrest of the opposition activist Maria Kolesnikova, several high-ranking EU politicians have increased pressure on the Belarusian government.
Federal Foreign Minister Heiko Maas (SPD) demanded clarification about the whereabouts and the release of the opposition and other political prisoners.
"We are very concerned about Ms. Kolesnikowa," Maas told the "Bild" newspaper on Monday.
Her disappearance and more than 630 arrests during renewed mass protests against the head of state Alexander Lukashenko at the weekend provoked international outrage.
"The continued arrests and repression, also and especially against the members of the Coordination Council, are unacceptable," said Maas.
The coordination council established by the opposition announced on Monday that Kolesnikova, along with a spokesman and an employee, had been "kidnapped by strangers in the center of Minsk" that morning.
The Coordination Council accused Lukashenko of using "terrorist methods".
An eyewitness told the news website Tut.by how masked men pushed Kolesnikova into a minibus around 10:00 a.m. local time and took off her cell phone.
According to the Greens federal chairman Robert Habeck, Irina Sukhij, the former chairwoman of the Greens in Belarus, was arrested in addition to Kolesnikova.
Kolesnikova is an important member of the Coordination Council and is one of the few prominent opposition politicians who decided against going into exile and stayed in Belarus.
The 38-year-old appeared in the election campaign together with Weronika Zepkalo at the side of opposition candidate Svetlana Tichanovskaya.
She had previously worked as campaign manager for the candidacy of ex-banker Viktor Babaryko, who is currently in prison.
Tichanowskaja is now in neighboring Lithuania, Zepkalo in Ukraine.
Another well-known activist, Olga Kowalkowa, fled to Poland on Saturday.
The EU foreign affairs representative Josep Borrell also called on the Belarusian authorities to "release political opponents immediately".
The European Union expects "the immediate release of all people who were imprisoned for political reasons before and after the fake presidential elections on August 9," said Borrell on Monday.
The spokesman for the federal government, Steffen Seibert, made a similar statement.
He condemned the actions of the Belarusian authorities.
The federal government also demands the immediate release of those arrested while exercising "democratic civil rights".
Lithuania warns of closing ranks between Belarus and Russia
Lithuania, meanwhile, warns of a close alliance between its neighboring country Belarus and Russia.
Belarusian President Lukashenko is about to give up his country's independence and sign an agreement on a stronger alliance with Russia, Lithuanian Foreign Minister Linas Linkevicius said on TV on Monday.
Russia "will now quickly implement what it has not done for 20 years," said the minister.
"And that is very worrying."
The integration of Belarus and Russia can hardly be stopped.
Lukashenko is neither morally nor politically entitled to do so.
Such a step would require a "mandate from the people", otherwise further tensions are inevitable.
Linkevicius stressed that a closer relationship between Russia and Belarus could lead to Russian military being stationed in Belarus.
The EU and NATO country Lithuania borders on Belarus, formerly known as Belarus.
Both states are former Soviet republics.
In Belarus there have been protests against the presidential election for almost a month, after which Lukashenko declared himself the clear winner.
The opposition accuses him of electoral fraud.
During the crisis, Lukashenko had sought more contact with Russian President Vladimir Putin after relations between the two politicians had previously cooled.
Putin recently campaigned for a long-standing plan to forge closer ties between Belarus and Russia.
Lukashenko had previously rejected this plan and accused Russia of wanting to annex Belarus.
Since the controversial presidential election on August 9th, people in Belarus have been demonstrating against Lukashenko, who has been ruling authoritarian for 26 years.
They accuse the government of massive fraud in the election, which, according to official information, Lukashenko won with 80 percent of the vote.
They are not deterred by the violence of the security forces.
On Sunday, despite a large security presence, more than 100,000 people took part in the protests in the capital Minsk alone.
According to the Interior Ministry, the police arrested a total of 633 demonstrators, more than ever before.
363 were still in custody on Monday.
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