Financial Times: New Package Of EU Sanctions Closes Last Loopholes For Lukashenka

EU leaders have provisionally agreed on the fifth package of sanctions.

A new package of EU sanctions against Belarus will close the "last loopholes" for Aliaksandr Lukashenka's regime following the forced landing of the Ryanair plane in Minsk and the arrest of opposition journalist Raman Pratasevich. The EU leaders have previously agreed on restrictive measures.

This was reported by the Financial Times newspaper, citing diplomatic sources.

According to the newspaper interlocutors, the sanctions package still requires legal work, and the details of the restrictive measures remain confidential until their publication. Diplomats say it's aimed to increase pressure on Belarusian state-owned companies and to deprive the regime of large sources of income.

The newspaper sources note that financial sanctions are planned, which include, among others, a ban on securities trading, access to the money market and foreign lending. It is also proposed to ban deposits of private banks, humanitarian operations and some local projects.

The proposed EU package also includes the tobacco industry in Belarus and closes what one diplomat called "the last loopholes" in the existing arms embargo, including stopping exports of high-accuracy rifles used by biathletes.

These proposals were not included in the fourth package of sanctions against Belarus because of Austria's position.