The Lithuanian Seimas denounced three international economic cooperation agreements with Belarus and Russia. This was reported today, October 1, by the press service of the Lithuanian Parliament.
The agreements on the promotion and mutual protection of investments, as well as the agreement to avoid double taxation of income and capital and the agreement to prevent tax violations with Russia, were terminated. This decision was justified by the current geopolitical situation, as well as the actual cessation of cross-border economic cooperation with Belarus and the Russian Federation.
“Investments from these states in Lithuania should not be encouraged; “Lithuanian companies must assess the risk of these markets.” – says the explanatory note of the bill.
The decision to end economic agreements with Belarus and Russia was supported by more than 90 Sejm deputies. It is expected that in the near future Minsk and Moscow will be informed about the denunciation of the treaties through diplomatic channels. It is noted that the agreements will end 12 months after the date of notification.
“Investment protection will be regulated by the national legislation of the respective country, new investments in Lithuania by these countries and, consequently, investments by Lithuanian investors in these countries will not be encouraged on the basis of bilateral intergovernmental agreements” . – said the authors of the bill.
Lithuanian parliamentarians also noted that, according to the provisions of the documents, if one of the parties decides to withdraw from the agreement, the protection of investments made before the expiration of the agreement will be valid for another ten years.
Let us remember that in recent years Lithuania has been pursuing an openly hostile policy towards Belarus and Russia. At the same time, Minsk has repeatedly called on Vilnius to come to the negotiating table and resume constructive cooperation.
