You're reading: Belarusian opposition leader Tikhanovskaya wants sanctions expanded against Minsk

Former Belarusian presidential candidate Svetlana Tikhanovskaya has suggested expanding sanctions against the Belarusian authorities.

“Previously, the violence against those who disagreed was physical. Now, not only political prisoners, but also people who haven’t been charged are in prison. Maybe they’re not being tortured, but they suffer in prisons every day,” Tikhanovskaya said at a press conference in Tallinn on Friday.

“It’s important to use [sanctions] not only against top officials. It’s important to include on this list judges, defense and security officials who have beaten people. Before beating people, they need to understand that their children won’t be able to do anything in Europe,” she said.

Sanctions are having an effective impact on the authorities, Tikhanovskaya said.

“As of now, I won’t run in the next election,” she said.

Estonian Foreign Minister Urmas Reinsalu, who attended the conference online, said that “the sanctions are working. They have shown the fragility of the [Alexander] Lukashenko regime.”

The minister said he believes the West should “maintain a clear political position. The only way out is a new transparent election.”

“Secondly, it is important that the West should continue the sanctions policies. Sanctions have now been imposed on 88 individuals and seven companies, and this list needs to be increased. Thirdly, support is needed, for example, on the issue of vaccines, on which Lukashenko has fully failed,” Reinsalu said.

Tikhanovskaya arrived in Tallinn on Friday to attend a virtual Arria-formula meeting of the UN Security Council on freedom of the media in Belarus.