THE FOREIGN Secretary has announced a raft of new economic sanctions against Belarus on the anniversary of its election.
The measures come a year after Alexander Lukashenko declared a landslide victory in the polls, despite widespread reports of fraud and meddling.
Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, the opposition candidate, was forced in to exile despite overwhelming evidence showing her party won the election.
Today a series of trade, financial and aviation sanctions have been imposed on the country by the UK, in response to what the UK Government describes as undermining of democracy and human rights violations by the Lukashenko regime.
The US is also announcing new sanctions measures today.
Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab said: "The Lukashenko regime continues to crush democracy and violate human rights in Belarus.
"These sanctions demonstrate that the UK will not accept Lukashenko’s actions since the fraudulent election.
"The products of Lukashenko’s state-owned industries will not be sold in the UK, and our aerospace companies will not touch his fleet of luxury aircraft.”
Among the sanctions include measures to prevent Belarusian air carriers from overflying or landing in the UK and a prohibition on the provision of technical assistance to President Lukashenko’s fleet of luxury aircraft.
Trade measures on potash, petroleum products, interception and monitoring goods and technology, goods used in cigarette manufacturing, and dual-use goods and technology to reduce the amount of revenue flowing to the Lukashenko regime and to limit its access to items that could enable the internal repression of the Belarusian population.
Financial measures prohibiting purchases of transferable securities and money-market instruments issued by the Belarusian state, as well as those issued by state-owned banks, and the provision of loans have also been imposed.
The UK Government says the move is targeted to out pressure on the Lukashenko administration, state institutions and associates to change their behaviour and minimise consequences on the wider Belarusian population.
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