Obama extended sanctions against the authorities of Belarus

Photo: whitehouse.gov

US President Barack Obama extended sanctions against Belarusian officials for another year. Obama’s message to the US Congress that sanctions are extended after 16 June 2016 of the year is posted on the official Online White House.

The document says that the actions of certain representatives of the Belarusian government "pose an extraordinary threat to national security and US foreign policy."

According to the American president, these people also “undermine democratic processes and institutions in Belarus.” In the decree, which extended President Obama, the Belarusian authorities are accused of "human rights violations related to political repression, as well as involvement in corruption."

Sanctions against Alyaksandr Lukashenka and a number of officials and members of their families were imposed on 16 on June 2006 of the year by George W. Bush. The occasion was the presidential election in Belarus, which in the United States and the EU recognized as undemocratic.

The sanctions imply blocking the accounts of these persons in US banks, prohibiting them from entering the United States, prohibiting American companies from doing business with them.

The decision of the US President to extend sanctions against Belarusian officials was taken against the background of improved relations between the countries. In June, it became known that the staff of the US Embassy in Minsk will be replenished with an economic adviser.

In addition, this year Belarus was visited by Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs Bridget Brink and her colleague Robert Berschinski. Speaking about sanctions, US officials noted that the United States will be guided by an OSCE / ODIHR report on how the parliamentary elections will be held this fall.

In March, Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense Michael Carpenter also visited Belarus 2016. He met with Alexander Lukashenko and said that the parties are preparing to exchange military attaches. The President of Belarus, in turn, noted that "Belarus has a Western world and the United States has a certain positive outlook."

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