On the occasion of the third anniversary of the mass protests in Belarus following the contested presidential elections, the United States Department of the Treasury announced new sanctions against a number of Belarusian individuals and entities.
According to the statement released by the department, the new sanctions target eight individuals and five entities, as well as one aircraft. The sanctioned individuals and entities are implicated in the repression carried out by the Belarusian regime against civil society, participation in Russia's war against Ukraine, and the enrichment of Alexander Lukashenko.
Among the entities targeted are three state-owned enterprises: the major Belarusian state carrier "Belavia" and Lukashenko's aircraft EW-301PJ; the "Minsk Civil Aviation Plant," involved in repairing Russian equipment; and the Belarusian Metallurgical Plant.
The sanctions list also includes Dmitry Korchik, the director of the Belarusian Metallurgical Plant, and his Miami-registered subsidiary; the Department of Financial Investigations of the Belarusian State Control Committee and four of its employees, who are involved in suppressing freedom of speech in the country.
Additionally, the United States Department of the Treasury has imposed restrictions on Alexey Alexin – one of Lukashenko's "wallets," his two sons, and his wife for assisting the Belarusian regime in evading sanctions.
Simultaneously, the U.S. Department of State has implemented visa restrictions on 101 officials of the Belarusian regime, including several judges who have issued politically motivated verdicts against Belarusians.
It is known that the presidential elections of 2020 were recognized as falsified in favor of Lukashenko, who orchestrated repressions against dissenting protestors. According to human rights organizations, at least 1500 people in Belarus are political prisoners.
