It’s been four years since Alyaksandr Lukashenka extended his vice-like grip on power in Belarus by again “winning” a rigged presidential election. His sham re-election in August 2020 sparked massive protests, which Lukashenka’s security forces met with violence. Tens of thousands of Belarusians were arrested; hundreds of media outlets and non-governmental organizations shuttered. Some 1400 political prisoners remain in detention.
Marking the anniversary of the fraudulent 2020 presidential election, Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced in a statement, “In coordination with our allies and partners from Canada, the European Union, and the United Kingdom, we are taking additional sanctions actions to promote accountability for the Lukashenka regime’s continued repression.”
The State Department is imposing visa restrictions on 19 regime officials and their affiliates for their involvement in undermining democracy in Belarus. “These individuals,” said Secretary Blinken, “include those involved in efforts to misuse Interpol systems to target Belarusian dissidents abroad, the physical abuse and reported torture of pro-democracy activists, tracking and arresting citizens who subscribe to social media sites that carry content criticizing the regime, and granting permission for armed servicemen to violently disperse peaceful protests in 2020.”
The U.S. Treasury Department is imposing sanctions on 19 individuals, 14 entities and one aircraft pursuant to Belarus-related Executive Order 14038. “As Belarus marks another year under Lukashenka’s rule, the regime’s blatantly corrupt, destabilizing and anti-democratic acts – along with its continued support for Russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine – have only further ostracized Belarus from the global community,” wrote Acting Treasury Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence Bradley Smith. “The United States, in coordination with our allies and partners, remains committed to holding the regime and its key facilitators accountable.”
In a joint statement, the United States, Cananda, the United Kingdom, and the European Union
called on Belarusian authorities “to immediately and unconditionally release the almost 1400 prisoners being held in Belarusian prisons. We will continue to consider our options,” they said, “including additional sanctions, to hold accountable those who enable the Lukashenk[a] regime’s suppression of democracy in Belarus. We will also continue to take meaningful steps to expose and cut off the flow of crucial support and components through Belarus that fuel Russia’s unprovoked war against Ukraine, while maintaining our support for the Belarusian people.”
