Belaruskali sought to move arbitration against Lithuania to UAE or Singapore, but court refused
Belarusian potash fertilizer producer Belaruskali proposed to move the arbitration process against Lithuania to a neutral country not associated with the EU, which continues to impose sanctions on Belarus, Radio Svaboda reports .
Initially, Belaruskali insisted on its claim being heard at the Permanent Court of Arbitration (PCA) in Switzerland, but after Switzerland joined the European Union's sanctions, that country, according to Belaruskali, ceased to be neutral.
Among the potential venues, the Belarusian plaintiff named the Dubai International Financial Centre (United Arab Emirates) or Singapore as the "most suitable neutral options". At the same time, Belaruskali was ready to agree to any other location outside the European Union, but "at a sufficient distance from the EU sanctions system".
Lithuania opposed such a relocation. In its response, Vilnius noted that changing the arbitration venue is possible only in exceptional circumstances — if "hearing the case in the initially determined location becomes impossible". The Lithuanian side also drew attention to the fact that Belarus proposed Switzerland as the arbitration venue only after it had joined the EU sanctions.
However, the arbitration did not recognize the arguments of the Belarusian side as legally justified and denied the request.
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