The European Union does not believe that the recent Belarusian presidential election was either free or fair and is now exploring possibilities to impose sanctions against people responsible for police violence that ensued after voting was closed, EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Josep Borrell said Tuesday in a statement agreed by foreign ministers of all 27 EU member states.

“The elections [in Belarus] were neither free nor fair. State authorities deployed disproportionate and unacceptable violence causing at least one death and many injuries. Thousands of people were detained and the crackdown on freedoms of assembly, media and expression intensified. We call on the Belarusian authorities to release immediately and unconditionally all detained.

It is against this background that we will be assessing the Belarusian authorities’ actions to address the current situation and conducting an in-depth review of the EU’s relations with Belarus. This may include, inter alia, taking measures against those responsible for the observed violence, unjustified arrests, and falsification of election results”, - reads the statement.