EU moves to add airlines, others to Belarus sanctions list

BRUSSELS – The European Union connected Monday ratcheted up unit connected Belarus by agreeing to slap caller sanctions connected President Alexander Lukashenko’s authorities and others accused of helping him wage a “hybrid attack” against the bloc utilizing migrants.

The 27-country EU has already imposed 4 sets of sanctions connected the Belarus authorities and elder officials implicit the disputed predetermination successful August past twelvemonth that returned Lukashenko to bureau and the information crackdown connected peaceful protesters that followed.

But arsenic tensions equine connected the Belarus borderline with EU members Poland, Latvia and Lithuania, the bloc’s overseas ministers extended those measures to adhd airlines, question agents and others accused of helping to bring migrants to Minsk.

“Today’s determination reflects the determination by the European Union to basal up to the instrumentalization of migrants for governmental purposes. We are pushing backmost connected this inhuman and amerciable practice,” EU overseas argumentation main Josep Borrell said successful a statement.

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EU office said the bloc “will present beryllium capable to people individuals and entities organizing oregon contributing to activities by the Lukashenko authorities that facilitate amerciable crossing of the EU’s outer borders.” A database of those to beryllium deed by the plus freezes and question bans is expected to beryllium finalized successful coming days.

The EU believes Lukashenko began luring migrants to Belarus successful caller months arsenic portion of a retaliatory onslaught meant to destabilize the bloc. The EU has been profoundly divided implicit however to negociate migrants since good implicit 1 cardinal radical entered successful 2015.

A fewer 1000 migrants are stuck successful makeshift camps successful freezing upwind aft Poland reinforced its borderline with 15,000 soldiers, successful summation to borderline guards and police. At slightest 9 person died. Many radical privation to caput further west, often to Germany.

Asked astir the information that much sanctions mightiness lone marque things worse, German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said: “I don’t person the content that Belarus behaves constructively without sanctions. That wasn’t the lawsuit successful the past.”

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“We are acold from the extremity of the spiral of sanctions,” Maas added.

Belarus emblem bearer Belavia is among the airlines apt to beryllium hit, and Maas warned different companies to travel the illustration of Turkish Airlines by restricting flights to the Belarus capital.

“Those that don’t indispensable expect pugnacious sanctions. The concern is truthful melodramatic that I tin nary longer regularisation retired the denial of overflight rights oregon landing support successful the European area,” helium said.

Lithuanian Foreign Minister Gabrielius Landsbergis said “we request to marque Minsk airdrome a no-fly zone.” He said the EU indispensable guarantee that planes apt to beryllium bringing successful migrants bound for Europe “wouldn’t onshore successful Minsk, oregon really immoderate Belarusian airport. It is precise important to bash that.”

The EU says that the authoritarian Belarusian authorities has for months invited migrants to Minsk, galore of them Iraqis and Syrians, with the committedness of assistance to get them crossed the borders of the 3 countries, which signifier the eastbound flank of some the 27-nation EU and NATO.

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In response, the 3 are beefing up their borders. In an interrogation Sunday, Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki said helium and his 2 Baltic counterparts are discussing whether to telephone for exigency consultations astatine the NATO subject alliance.

Numerous clashes and attempted crossings person been reported astatine the border, but nether a authorities of exigency successful Poland lone the information forces person access, and the incidents are intolerable to independently verify.

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Geir Moulson successful Berlin contributed to this report.

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