Biden Administration Weighs New Sanctions Against Belarus

The Biden administration is looking at a new round of economic sanctions concentrating on Belarus and its authoritarian chief after a major dissident appealed to U.S. officers for more robust U.S. action, according to contributors in meetings last week in Washington.

The new sanctions would be in addition to punitive steps imposed by the administration previously this yr and would goal to further more isolate the chief, Alexander Lukashenko, practically a yr after he initiated a crackdown on a well known uprising in the country, according to a Belarusian political adviser.

The administration’s deliberations occur on the heels of a take a look at to Washington last week by Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, who opposed Mr. Lukashenko in last year’s contested election. In meetings with lawmakers and senior administration officers, Ms. Tsikhanouskaya pressed for harder sanctions.

Ms. Tsikhanouskaya achieved with President Biden’s top rated two overseas-coverage aides, nationwide stability adviser Jake Sullivan and Secretary of State Antony Blinken. Mr. Biden did not meet up with with the dissident chief.

Franak Viacorka, a senior adviser to Ms. Tsikhanouskaya, stated State Office officers indicated their intent to enact new sanctions, specially on the Belarusian potash and crude-oil sectors, which Ms. Tsikhanouskaya stated are shut to Mr. Lukashenko, in addition to getting essential pieces of the country’s economic climate.