NAfter the forced landing of a passenger plane in Minsk, the US government will reinstate sanctions against nine state-owned Belarusian companies next week. In addition, in consultation with the EU and other partners, targeted sanctions against “key figures in the regime” are being prepared by President Alexander Lukashenko, said US President Joe Biden’s spokeswoman Jen Psaki.
In addition, a new legal instrument is being prepared to give the president more leeway to impose further penalties, said Psaki on Friday evening. The Foreign Ministry has issued a travel warning for Belarus. The FAA has warned the airlines to exercise “extreme caution” when flying over Belarus, it said.
USA calls for “credible investigation”
The US is calling on Lukashenko to allow a credible international investigation into the incident with the Ryanair plane, said Psaki. In addition, all political prisoners must be released and a serious dialogue should begin with the opposition, which will lead to fair and free presidential elections under international observation, said Psaki.
The White House initially did not give any details about the sanctions against the nine state-owned companies, which are to apply again from Wednesday. It therefore remained unclear which companies are affected. The US first imposed sanctions on Belarus in 2006.
The authorities of the authoritarian-ruled republic landed in Minsk last Sunday a Ryanair plane on its way from Greece to Lithuania with the help of a fighter jet – allegedly because of a bomb threat. According to the EU, 171 people were on board, including the critical blogger Roman Protassewitsch, who was arrested. Most of the remaining passengers traveled on to Vilnius after a long delay.
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source https://pledgetimes.com/after-the-ryanair-incident-usa-imposes-sanctions-on-belarus/
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