U.S. imposes new sanctions on Belarus enterprises (Reuters)

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – The United States on Thursday imposed additional economic sanctions against four state-owned enterprises in Belarus, the State Department said.

“The sanctions are a response to the continued incarceration of political prisoners, the crackdown on political activists, journalists and civil society representatives,” State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said.

The Belarussian government has cracked down on the opposition after a disputed December 2010 election.

The United States and the European Union had previously imposed travel restrictions and other sanctions against Belarussian President Alexander Lukashenko and other Belarussian officials this year after condemning the post-election crackdown.

“These measures target those responsible for the repression in Belarus following the December 19th presidential election. They are not designed to harm the people of Belarus,” Nuland said.

She reiterated the U.S. call for the government of Belarus to release all political prisoners immediately.

(Reporting by Tabassum Zakaria; Editing by Eric Beech)

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