EU to slap new sanctions on Belarus, target its economy

The European Union's top diplomat says the bloc's foreign ministers are set to approve a fresh set of sanctions against scores of officials in Belarus and prepare a series of new measures aimed at hurting the country’s economy

BRUSSELS -- European Union foreign ministers will approve Monday a fresh set of sanctions against scores of officials in Belarus and prepare a series of measures aimed at hurting the country’s economy, EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell said. The EU has ratcheted up sanctions since President Alexander Lukashenko won a sixth term last August in elections slammed as fraudulent by the 27-nation bloc. The measures have targeted people accused of electoral misconduct and responsibility for the police crackdown that followed. But the EU has tightened ranks further since Belarus' authorities forced a Ryanair plane to land in Minsk last month and by what appears to be the use of migrants to pressure Lithuania, which has provided safe-haven to opposition figures and is one of Lukashenko's most vocal critics in Europe. “We will approve the package of new sanctions, which is a wider package,” Borrell told reporters in Luxembourg where he was chairing the ministerial meeting. He said asset freezes and travel bans will be slapped on a total of around 86 people and organizations.