Western governments and the European Union moved toward tightening sanctions against Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko after security forces dismantled a protest encampment in central Minsk and detained at least 200 demonstrators.
The crackdown deepened an already sharp divide between Russia and the West over Belarus. Moscow had quickly endorsed Lukashenko's disputed re-election to a third term, with Commonwealth of Independent States observers calling the vote legitimate. European and American monitors took the opposite view, and Washington called for a new election.
Norway, Poland, the United States, and Canada all condemned the detention of protesters. The EU, treating Belarus as a matter of particular concern given its shared border, voted to expand existing sanctions against the Minsk government.
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov dismissed comparisons between the Minsk police action and unrest elsewhere in Europe, saying he was confident such protests had little chance of producing political change. He also accused the OSCE observer mission of acting as an instigator by questioning the election's legitimacy before voting had even concluded.
Swedish Prime Minister Goeran Persson urged EU members to present a unified front toward both Belarus and Russia. Beyond Belarus, Moscow and Western capitals remain at odds over Iran's nuclear program and Ukraine's political direction.
Historical summary. TurkishPress restated this wire report, first published in March 2006, in its own words.