Merkel announced plans to impose targeted sanctions against Belarus

Berlin and Paris strongly condemn the actions of Belarusian President ALEXANDER LUKASHENKO in relation to the civil society of the republic, and sanctions against the country will be implemented pointwise, German Chancellor Angela Merkel told reporters after a joint meeting of the German and French Councils of Ministers. The recording of the press conference was published by Der Spiegel.

“We strongly condemn what Lukashenko is doing with his own civil society and opposition, this does not correspond to our standards and ideas,” Merkel said. She noted: “We are now implementing the sanctions very precisely.”

“The situation is depressing, and this will not change the meeting between President Lukashenko and President Putin in Sochi,” she stated.

The heads of state and government of the EU countries decided to expand sanctions against Belarus after the incident with the Ryanair plane on May 23. The liner flew from Athens to Vilnius and made an emergency landing at the MINSK airport due to a report of mining, which was not confirmed.