US and Canada impose fresh sanctions on Belarus
The United States and Canada have imposed separate sanctions against nearly two dozen Belarus-related targets, designated over support for Russia’s war in Ukraine, human rights violations, and in relation to the 2020 crackdown on dissent that gave President Alexander Lukashenko a sixth term in office.
The US Treasury Department announced, 15 April, it was designating one entity and five individuals for facilitating sanctions evasion for a major Belarusian defence enterprise; six revenue-generating state-owned enterprises; and five entities and five individuals involved in a global arms network connected to Peleng JSC, a Belarus defence corporation, designated by the US in December 2021.
The designations were coordinated with sanctions announced by Canada against Belarus, which Treasury said ‘is demonstrative of the sustained commitment amongst partners to amplify the Lukashenka regime’s continued anti-democratic governance in Belarus.’
Canada said it was imposing sanctions on 21 individuals ‘who are involved or complicit in ongoing human rights violations in Belarus since the fraudulent presidential election of 2020.’ They include former senior government officials, public prosecutors, members of the judiciary and prison officials.
