Ukraine invasion: EU approves new sanctions against Belarus

European Union diplomats have approved new sanctions against Belarus for its supporting role in Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the French Presidency of the EU said on Wednesday.

EU diplomats approved new sanctions against Belarusian people who are playing a role in the attacks to Ukraine, the French Presidency said on Twitter.

Sanctions will also hit “some economic sectors, and in particular timber, steel and potassium,” the statement said.

An EU official said this week that one of the aims of the new sanctions against Minsk was to stop exports of any further Belarusian goods to the EU, on top of those already subject to sanctions previouly imposed by the EU after the president Alexander Lukashenko crushed protests following elections in August 2020.