SULAIMANI (ESTA) – Belarus will be subjected to new sanctions by the European Union over its supporting role in Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, said the French presidency of EU.
“Some economic sectors” and Belarusian people who are playing a role in the attacks to Ukraine will be affected by the sanctions, the presidency said on Twitter.
The economic sectors which will be hit by the sanctions include businesses in timber, steel and potash, it said in a statement.
“These measures will be published in the Official Journal of the EU for entry into force,” the presidency said in its statement, without indicating the exact timing of the publication.
An EU official said this week that one aim of the new sanctions on Minsk was to stop exports of any further Belarusian goods to the EU, on top of those already subject to EU sanctions imposed after President Alexander Lukashenko crushed protests following elections in August 2020.
Some of the sanctions are expected to close loopholes of existing restrictive measures.
The EU is already banning Belarus’ exports of potash, a fertilizer made of potassium, and oil products. But diplomats said Belarus was still exporting potash to the EU via Ukraine, and has also boosted its exports to the EU of oil products obtained from coal.
