Belarusian Foreign Ministry summons Armenian charge d'affaires

The Belarusian Foreign Ministry said on Wednesday that it summoned Armenian charge d'affaires, Narek Tiraturyan, over the vandalism against the Belarusian Embassy in Armenia's capital Yerevan.

"The Armenian diplomat was informed in detail about the vandalism committed by a group of people against the building of the Belarusian Embassy in Yerevan, the damage caused to the Belarusian diplomatic mission and the obviously insufficient measures taken by the Armenian law enforcement agencies to prevent it," the ministry said in a statement.

The ministry stressed that it reminded the Armenian diplomat of his country's obligation as a host state to ensure the safety of the Belarusian diplomatic mission and its property, as well as the safety of diplomatic personnel.

"The Belarusian side expects that the vandals will be identified, compensated for the damage caused and will be punished in accordance with the legislation of Armenia," it said.

Eggs and tomatoes were thrown at the building of the Belarusian Embassy in Yerevan earlier in the day as a sign of protest against Belarus' support of Azerbaijan.

On June 13, Armenia called back its ambassador to Belarus for "consultation," shortly after Minsk summoned him to register a strong protest over his Prime Minister Nikol Pashinyan's remarks about his refusal to sit at the same table with the nation's President Alexander Lukashenko.

The move came after the Armenian diplomat was summoned to the Belarusian Foreign Ministry earlier in the day, where he received a strong protest over Pashinyan's remarks about his refusal to visit Belarus or sit at the same table with Lukashenko, who had publicly supported Azerbaijan during a recent visit to Baku.