BELARUS NEWS AND ANALYSIS

DATE:

14/11/2007

U.S. Freezes Assets Of Belarus's Largest Petrochemical Company

The U.S. Treasury Department on November 13 announced financial sanctions against Belneftekhim, a Belarusian state-owned petrochemical company, stating that it is controlled by Belarusian President Alyaksandr Lukashenka, Belapan and RFE/RL's Belarusian Service reported. The move by the Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control freezes any assets under U.S. jurisdiction belonging to Belneftekhim, and bars U.S. citizens from doing business with the company. The measures apply to Belneftekhim's offices in Germany, Latvia, Ukraine, Russia, China, and its wholly owned U.S. subsidiary, Belneftekhim USA.. Adam Szubin, the director of the Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control, said the "action tightens sanctions against Lukashenka by imposing financial sanctions against a massive conglomerate under the regime's control." In a statement, the Treasury Department noted that "today's action follows the 2006 blocking of the assets of Lukashenka and nine other senior officials of his administration. In February 2007, Treasury blocked the assets of another six high-ranking Belarusian officials, bringing the total number of designated officials to 16." U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs David Kramer recently warned of new sanctions against Belarus because of the pressures its government places on civil society and its violations of democratic standards. AM

Source:

http://www.rferl.org/newsline/2007/11/3-cee/cee-141107.asp