Interpol denies issuing warrants for Belarus's potash arrests

The international police organization Interpol has denied Belarusian claims that it has issued, at Belarus's request, international arrest warrants for the principal shareholder and four managers of Russia's Uralkali potash company.

Interpol said the Belarusian requests for Suleiman Kerimov, Uralkali's main shareholder, and four others are still under review.

In a September 11 statement, it said it did not ordinarily comment on requests from member countries, but "in light of public comments made by authorities in Belarus and of inaccurate reports in the media," it felt it needed to set the record straight.

Kerimov is one of Russia's richest nationals. The charges against him are linked to a probe into Uralkali's Director-General Vladislav Baumgertner, who was arrested last month in Minsk on charges of "exceeding his authority" during joint negotiations on Russian and Belarusian potash exports.

Uralkali denies the charges. Baumgertner's arrest has heightened tensions between Russia and Belarus.