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TALINN (Estonia) Nov. 29 (AP) — Belarus held a state funeral Tuesday for its foreign minister, who died suddenly at the age of 64, sparking speculation that his death was skewed toward the West and may have been impropriety.
Belarusian authorities gave no cause of death for Vladimir Makei on Saturday. No one knew he had any chronic illnesses.
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Some media outlets and observers have claimed, without offering evidence, that Makei may have been poisoned by the security services of Belarus’ main ally, Russia, which has been watching with vigilance his efforts to negotiate a settlement with the West.
Makei has been a top aide to Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko for more than two decades. Many analysts see his diplomatic maneuvers as part of Lukashenko’s efforts to improve relations with the West, which have been frozen after the opposition and what the West sees as a brutal crackdown on protests following his re-election in 2020.
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Relations between Belarus and the West have further strained after hosting Russian troops who invaded Ukraine on February 24.
Lukashenko attended Makei’s funeral and touched his coffin but made no public statements.
While Makei remains staunchly loyal to Lukashenko as he crushes the opposition, he is seen as more liberal than the Belarusian leader and his entourage.
The day before his death, Makei met in Minsk with Archbishop Antejozic, Vatican envoy and Nuncio Antejočić, in what some see as part of Belarus’ strategy to repair relations with the West.
Next month, he plans to travel to Poland to attend a meeting of the transatlantic security group Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe.
Artyom Shraibman, an independent political analyst, said: “Makei is seizing a window of opportunity to establish a dialogue with the West, giving Lukashenko some leeway and room to bargain with the Kremlin. “
“Makei has earned a reputation as the leading pro-Western voice in the Belarusian government, so it’s no surprise his death has sparked numerous conspiracy theories.” (AP)
(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from a Syndicated News feed, the content body may not have been modified or edited by LatestLY staff)
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