Minsk, Jul 18 (IANS): Belarus will introduce a visa-free policy for 35 European countries, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs has said in a statement on its official website.

The policy will take effect on Friday, July 19, and will last until December 31, 2024, Xinhua news agency reported, citing the statement.

Citizens of the 35 countries, including members of the European Union and the UK, can stay in Belarus for 30 days at a time without a visa.

The statement said that in order to further demonstrate Belarus's commitment to openness, peace and good neighbourliness, and to simplify personnel exchanges, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko supports citizens of 35 European countries to temporarily enter and stay in Belarus through road and rail checkpoints without a visa.

According to the State Border Committee of Belarus, the visa-free policy for citizens of Poland, Lithuania and Latvia entering Belarus which has taken effect since 2022, will be now extended to citizens of 35 other European countries. The visa-free policy can be used multiple times, and shall not exceed 90 days within a year.

This policy does not apply to holders of special passports such as diplomatic and official passports.