U.S., E.U. ease sanctions on Belarus

Washington — The United States and the European Union both announced Oct. 29 that they have eased sanctions on Belarus, at least temporarily. The U.S. Department of Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control said Oct. 29 that effective Oct. 30, all transactions otherwise prohibited by Executive Order 13405, issued June 16, 2006, involving nine named companies, or any entities that are owned, individually or in the aggregate, directly or indirectly, 50 percent or more by one or more of the entities, are authorized. The nine include Belarussian Oil Trade House, Belneftekhim, Belneftekhim USA Inc., Belshina, Grodno Azot, Grodno Khimvolokno, Lakokraska, Naftan, and Polotsk Steklovolokno. However, the reprieve is only through April 30, 2016, unless extended or revoked. A State Department spokesman termed the suspension as “a limited reprieve … that opens the door to expanded commercial ties for the Belarussian economy.” Opponents, led by Intrepid Potash Inc., have argued that potash imports this year from Belarus into the U.S. have been in violation of these sanctions (GM July 20, p. 1). Reasons giving for the change of position include a release of political prisoners, Belarus’s aid in the mediation of the Russia-Ukraine dispute, and the recent relatively democratic national election, though some opponents boycotted the overwhelming re-election of President Alexander Lukashenko to a fifth term. A Bloomberg headline referred to Belarus as the “darling of the bond market.” Lukashenko, who former president George W. Bush tagged as the “last dictator” in Europe, has positioned Belarus to garner the financial backing of both Russia and the West.