The Biden administration is taking into consideration a new spherical of financial sanctions targeting Belarus and its authoritarian chief soon after a top dissident appealed to U.S. officers for more robust U.S. motion, according to members in conferences past week in Washington.
The new sanctions would be in addition to punitive steps imposed by the administration previously this yr and would aim to further more isolate the chief, Alexander Lukashenko, approximately a yr soon after he initiated a crackdown on a common rebellion in the nation, according to a Belarusian political adviser.
The administration’s deliberations arrive on the heels of a pay a visit to to Washington past week by Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, who opposed Mr. Lukashenko in past year’s contested election. In conferences with lawmakers and senior administration officers, Ms. Tsikhanouskaya pressed for more durable sanctions.
Ms. Tsikhanouskaya achieved with President Biden’s major two overseas-coverage aides, national security adviser Jake Sullivan and Secretary of Condition Antony Blinken. Mr. Biden did not fulfill with the dissident chief.
Franak Viacorka, a senior adviser to Ms. Tsikhanouskaya, stated Condition Division officers indicated their intent to enact new sanctions, especially on the Belarusian potash and crude-oil sectors, which Ms. Tsikhanouskaya stated are close to Mr. Lukashenko, in addition to remaining vital pieces of the country’s overall economy.