U.S. to Impose Sanctions on Belarusan Leaders

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/03/24/AR2006032400942.html

The White House today denounced the suppression of political protests against election fraud in Belarus and said the United States plans to join European nations in imposing sanctions on Belarusan leaders.
...
Under Lukashenko, 51, a former Soviet collective farm manager who came to power in 1994 as an anti-corruption crusader, Belarus has become one of the world's "outposts of tyranny," as Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has described half a dozen authoritarian countries. But the man dubbed by Western critics as "Europe's last dictator" has won the support of Russian President Vladimir Putin, whose foreign minister defended today's police action against the protesters.

...

He said that "we strongly condemn the actions by Belarusan security services," who "forcibly seized and detained citizens of Belarus who were peacefully demonstrating against the fraudulent March 19th election results."

Praising the European Council's decision to impose sanctions on Belarusan leaders, McClellan said, "We plan to take parallel steps involving targeted travel restrictions and financial sanctions." The U.S. sanctions appeared likely to include travel restrictions against Lukashenko and other top Belarusan officials.


interesting<\i>

http://customwire.ap.org/dynamic/stories/U/US_BELARUS?SITE=JRC&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT&CTIME=2006-03-24-12-59-57

"WASHINGTON (AP) -- The United States joined European nations Friday in imposing sanctions on Belarus in retaliation for a crackdown on political protesters after an election that the White House said was fraudulent. ..."

Look in the mirror, you election-stealing Bushies!

Those "Free Speech Zones" that King George seems to like!!!!!

In this case, I expect Lukashenko welcomes the "attack". (Not that I particularly want to defend Lukashenko, just that this is all bullshit. See how long you would last camped in front of the White House with 300 people all claiming the US government is not legitimate.)

Or is it just another attempt to stir up trouble on Putin's door step like the 'revolutions' in Georgia and the Ukraine ?. The West is just sore that the Russians are no longer going to allow their energy resources to be looted for nothing but instead are going to sell them to the highest bidder (most probably China). As the Bush administration is only to happy to cosy up to a despot like Islam Karimov in Uzbekistan one can only marvel at the depths of hypocrisy which they are prepared to plunge. In reality neither side give a damn about 'outposts of tyranny', it is money and power that they crave.