FILE PHOTO: Spain’s Minister of Foreign Affairs Arancha Gonzalez Laya speaks during an interview with Reuters at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Madrid, Spain August 14, 2020. REUTERS/Juan Medina
August 18, 2020
MADRID (Reuters) – The European Union is considering imposing sanctions on Belarusian individuals linked to violence and election fraud, Spanish Foreign Minister Arancha Gonzalez Laya said on Tuesday.
EU leaders will discuss the situation in Belarus on Wednesday, she said.
Massive protests have been held in the country following presidential elections widely seen as fraudulent.
“We, in Europe, think there is room for sanctions, not against the country or against the country’s citizens, but against the individuals who have instigated violence or election process fraud,” she told Spanish Radio station Onda Cero.
(Reporting by Inti Landauro; editing by John Stonestreet)