EU imposes fresh sanctions on Belarus individuals, entities over repression, sanctions evasion

The European Union has imposed sanctions on an additional 26 individuals and two entities from Belarus in response to the ongoing situation in the country.

These measures specifically target members of the Belarusian judiciary, including judges responsible for politically motivated sentences against citizens who criticized the Lukashenko government, and the brutality of law enforcement, Caliber.Az reports citing a statement by the EU.  

These individuals are deemed accountable for the repression of civil society and opposition forces. Also sanctioned are heads and deputy heads of several correctional facilities, as well as the head of a medical unit within one of these institutions, where political prisoners endure inhumane conditions and abuse.

The new sanctions also target business figures, including those who have circumvented EU sanctions by using their positions to secure privileges or advantages for their companies. Among the sanctioned entities is Vlate Logistik LLC, a Belarusian transport and storage company that owns two border checkpoints on the EU-Belarus border, benefiting from tax advantages granted by the regime. Its shareholders, Aleh Barabanau, Aleh Herasim, Aleh Paitrou, Dzmitry Zamulevich, and Uladzimir Arkadzyeu, are also included in the sanctions list.

The second entity is Ruzekspeditsiya LLC, a company facilitating the regime’s circumvention of EU sanctions by participating in the illegal transfer of cars prohibited for sale or export to Belarus. The company’s owner, Aleh Arlou, is also sanctioned.

With these latest additions, the EU's restrictive measures against Belarus now affect 287 individuals and 39 entities. The sanctioned individuals face asset freezes, and EU citizens and companies are prohibited from making funds available to them. Additionally, those targeted by the sanctions are subject to travel bans, preventing them from entering or transiting through EU countries.

By Vafa Guliyeva