Biden administration places visa restrictions on 25 Belarusian officials

Tuesday’s announcement by the Biden administration regarding new visa restrictions in Belarus for 25 people was made amid Belarus’s decision to bring an opposition leader and other activists to trial on treason charges.

“These politically motivated trials are the latest examples of the Lukashenka regime’s efforts to intimidate and repress those who seek justice, respect for human rights, and a democratic Belarus,” said Secretary of State Antony Blinken in a statement.

The new order targets “regime officials,” including members of the National Assembly of Belarus, who took part in authorizing the death penalty for people convicted of supposed “attempted acts of terrorism” — a charge the State Department said has been used to intimidate the democratic opposition. Some of the individuals targeted have also supported legislation revoking citizenship for people outside the country charged with “extremism” and confiscating property for “unfriendly actions towards Belarus,” the State Department said.

The move to impose visa restrictions comes as the authoritarian regime of Alexander Lukashenko has put exiled democratic opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya on trial in absentia on treason charges and “conspiracy to seize power.” Tsikhanouskaya challenged Lukashenko’s results in the 2020 presidential election. Following a violent crackdown against protests against alleged fraud in the election, Tsikhanouskaya fled the country. She now faces a possible sentence of up to 15 year imprisonment.

The Biden administration has eagerly embraced visa bans as a means to punish bad actors overseas in the last few years — announcing visa penalties more than a dozen times in the president’s first six months in office alone. Biden has repeatedly targeted foreign officials and oligarchs for everything, from corruption to human rights violations in countries from Guatemala to Belarus.

Tuesday’s action adds to the United States’ tally of visa restrictions against individuals who have undermined democracy in Belarus since the 2020 presidential election, bringing the number up to 322 individuals.

“We will continue to use all appropriate tools to hold to account those in Belarus standing in the way of their fellow citizens’ democratic aspirations,” Blinken said.