January 29, Pozirk. Ihar Karpienka, chairman of the Belarusian Central Election Commission, called the British sanctions against him the highest praise for his activities and “the CEC’s work to organize the election process.”
“We understand perfectly well that those who impose these sanctions are not interested in whether the process complies with national legislation. They are interested in the result. And where they get the needed result, they evaluate it completely differently,” he said.
According to Karpienka, 486 international observers monitored the presidential election in Belarus, all stressing that the process was “democratic, open and transparent.”
Yesterday, the UK government announced sanctions against six individuals and three entities “in an immediate response to rigged presidential election in Belarus.”
Besides Karpienka, it blacklisted Andrej Ananienka, head of the Ministry of Internal Affairs’ Main Directorate for Combating Organized Crime and Corruption (GUBOPiK), and Michaił Biedunkievič, Ananienka’s deputy.
It also targeted the Orša-based Lehmaš plant, which produces a range of steel and cast iron products, and the Unmanned Helicopters (UAVHeli) design bureau.
The sanctions also covered three senior penitentiary officers and a company specializing in radar and weapon control systems.
