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The path for EU sanctions against supporters of Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko is clear after a week of lockdown. Cyprus withdrew its veto on planned punitive measures at the EU summit in Brussels on Friday night. Therefore, they could be approved by the Council of Ministers in the coming days and enter into force. The head of the council, Charles Michel, spoke of a “clear signal”. The head of the Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, added that she was glad that the path for sanctions was finally clear.
With the punitive measures, the EU wants to increase pressure on the leaders of Belarus and show solidarity with the people of the country. Since the presidential elections on August 9, there have been protests and strikes in the former Soviet republic against the authoritarian head of state Lukashenko, who has been in power for 26 years.
According to the current state of planning, the EU sanctions are intended to affect 40 people accused of participating in electoral fraud or violently suppressing peaceful protests. Lukashenko himself should not initially be among them. The reason is that this could complicate diplomatic efforts to resolve the conflict and deprive the EU of the opportunity to adjust its course again.
The EU maintains threats of sanctions against Turkey
The sanctions plans were recently blocked because Cyprus had linked its approval to the European Union imposing new sanctions on Turkey as well. Cyprus and Greece have long called on the EU to react more harshly to Turkish gas exploration in the eastern Mediterranean that they consider illegal.
At the summit, the EU decided to maintain the threats of sanctions against Turkey. In case of new unilateral measures by Turkey, the confederation would use all possible instruments and options, as the conclusions show. It was only the clear adherence to the sanctions threats that persuaded Cyprus to give in.
