Belarus opposition leader and former presidential candidate, Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, has held talks with European Union foreign ministers. The activist has urged the body to approve and carry-out previously discussed sanctions on officials accused of rigging the country’s presidential election last month.
Tsikhanouskaya’s request which was made while she visited the bloc’s foreign ministers in Brussels, comes as tensions reach an all-time high in the European state with six straight weekends of mass protests against President Alexander Lukashenko’s disputed re-election at the August 9, 2020 polls. Despite these protests, the EU has failed to follow through on its threat to impose sanctions on a list of some 40 Belarusians allegedly involved in illegally influencing the polls in Lukashenko’s favor.
“EU leaders have reasons not to push sanctions but I asked them to be more brave,” said Tsikhanouskaya, who fled to Lithuania after the election, adding that while the people and opposition had done its best to “manage” the situation themselves, they are currently in desperate need of exterior help.
Speaking on behalf of the union, German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas criticised the country’s handling of the ongoing protests, complaining that “the violence that Lukashenko is exerting against peaceful demonstrators is completely unacceptable.” He also suggested that the union consider adding Lukashenko to its 40-man list of people whom it intends to sanction.
The EU said, in late August, it would impose asset freezes and travel bans on officials in Belarus. But sanctions require agreement among all 27 member states, and the Belarus issue has become entangled in a debate over separate sanctions against Turkey, sought by Cyprus in a dispute over energy resources.
European Parliament On Board
Meanwhile, in an overwhelming show of support of the protests and opposition, the European Parliament has also for the EU to sanction President Lukashenko, after it voted not to recognize the president after November 2020.
With the assembly voting 574 to 37, with 82 absent, parliament in its press release announced that it was rejecting the August 9 presidential elections as it was rigged in favor of the incumbent.
“Once the term of office for the incumbent authoritarian leader Alexander Lukashenko expires on 5 November, parliament will no longer recognize him as the president of the country,” the statement read.
