Below is a preview of Rep. Chris Smith's remarks to the Kalinowski Forum at the Lithuanian Parliament:
                                                


                                                                                                  Remarks by Rep. Chris Smith of New Jersey
                                                                                                  Kalinowski Forum at the Lithuanian Parliament—March 22, 2021
                                                                                                  Chaired by Foreign Affairs Chairman Zygimantas Pavilionis

     Special thanks to Chairman Pavilionis for inviting me to the Kalinowski Forum and for your strong defense of human rights in Belarus and elsewhere— including your defense of political prisoners in Cuba and work to end religious persecution by the Chinese Communist Party.

     My most memorable trip to Lithuania, Mr. Chairman,  was 30 years ago, in February of 1991,  when some of my colleagues and I met with a very brave President Landsbergis in Vilnius a few weeks after Russian soldiers murdered 17 people at the TV tower.

     We were there to tangibly express our solidary with the President and the Lithuanian people—and with our voice and physical presence to try to deter further aggression. 

     Today Lithuania and the United States are extraordinarily close friends and allies and together we pray to God that the great people of Belarus will soon realize their dream of living in a democracy with their fundamental human rights protected.

     And with courageous and amazing leaders like Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya—and  friends like you,--I believe that democracy in Belarus is a matter of when and not if.

     No one in the world except China’s genocidal Xi Jinping who was the first to congratulate Lukashenko on August 10 or Russia’s Putin or Venezuela’s Maduro think that the egregiously flawed and corrupt August  election had any credibility.  

       The irrepressible spirit of freedom stirred among the people of Belarus  when the result was announced on August 9 declaring Alexander Lukashenko the winner over Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya—the people said enough is enough and took to the streets with incredible resolve and  clarity of purpose.

     The free nations of the world rallied as well. 

     And that solidarity must be continually reasserted and reenergized—we simply cannot lose our focus or grow weary. 

     It’s worth remembering that when it came to holding Lukashenko to account in the past, the problem was that the international community was strong at first, and then that fervor began to dissipate and business as usual began to reemerge.  Today, Lukashenko is counting on that happening again.

     You and I won’t let that happen.

     Last November, the House of Representatives passed legislation I  authored—the  Belarus Democracy, Human Rights and Sovereignty Act of 2020 . President Trump signed it into law in December.

     The new law updates the Belarus Democracy and Human Rights Acts of 2004, 2006, and 2011 that I also authored, and renews the personal economic sanctions and visa bans that can and must be imposed on an expanded list of bad actors in the Belarusian Government and Russian individuals complicit in the Lukashenko crackdown.  Among its many provisions:

·       The law calls for new elections.

·       It recognizes the Coordination Council as a legitimate institution to participate in a dialogue on a peaceful transition of power.

·       It calls for the release of all political prisoners.

·       It supports the aspirations of the people of Belarus to exercise their religious freedom.

·       It authorizes financial assistance to promote democracy and civil society in Belarus.

·       It requires a U.S. strategy to promote broadcasting, internet freedom, and access to information.

·       It requires a report on the personal assets of Alexander Lukashenko. We know he has acquired wealth. We need to know how much it is, and the people of his country who have been repressed by him for so long need to know what a kleptocrat he has been.

·       The new law gives much-needed support to the Belarusian media and the IT sector.

·       It unequivocally states that it is the policy of the United States "not to recognize any incorporation of Belarus into a union state with Russia.”—something Konstanty  Kalinowski—who resisted Russian supremacy in the late 19^th century would like and  defend. 

·       (As you know, the United States never recognized the incorporation of the Baltic States into the Soviet Union, we called them captive nations.)

     The new law still awaits aggressive, comprehensive and faithful implementation by the Biden Administration, but it was encouraging that both Presidents Trump and Biden sanctioned at least some individuals and entities responsible for the repression.

     On February 18^th, for example, Secretary of State Blinken imposed visa restrictions on 43 Belarusian individuals responsible for undermining Belarusian democracy.

     The Belarus Democracy, Human Rights and Sovereignty Act of 2020 is a blueprint—an action plan—that has the full and robust support of both Republicans and Democrats in the U.S. Congress.

     So, with respect and the strongest sense of urgency, I—we—call on the Biden Administration to use all the tolls embedded in the new law—and all other relevant laws—to assist the people of Belarus.