EU member states reach agreement for new Belarus sanctions

BRUSSELS - EU member states agreed new sanctions on Belarus, Russia's ally in the invasion of Ukraine, the French presidency of the European Council announced on Wednesday on Twitter.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen announced on Sunday new sanctions on Belarus, "the other aggressor" in the invasion of Ukraine.

Russia launched offensives against Ukraine from Belarus which borders the country to the north. Minsk's strongman leader Alexander Lukashenko is considered an ally and military supporter of Kremlin leader Vladimir Putin.

Von der Leyen said the measures are to target Belarus' most important export products such as minerals, fuels, tobacco, wood, cement, iron and steel.

Personal sanctions are also to target Belarusian officials that support Russia's invasion, von der Leyen said.

The sanctions package is to enter into force as soon as the measures are published in the EU Official Journal according to France, which currently holds the rotating EU presidency.

The EU already enacted far-reaching sanctions targeting Belarus last year because of Lukashenko's repression of civil society, the forced rerouting of a Ryanair plane and the orchestration of a migrant crisis on the bloc's border.