The United States, Britain, and Canada announced a series of extensive sanctions on Belarus on Friday, the fourth anniversary of the disputed presidential elections that returned President Alexander Lukashenko to power.
Lukashenko crushed pro-democracy mass protests following the elections held on August 9, 2020, which the government was widely condemned for due to election fraud.
The U.S. Department of the Treasury announced sanctions on 19 individuals and 14 companies and an aircraft for evading existing sanctions and supporting Russian war efforts in Ukraine.
Bradley Smith, the Treasury's counterterrorism official, stated, "The corrupt, destabilizing, and anti-democratic acts of the regime – alongside its ongoing support for the illegal Russian invasion of Ukraine – have only served to isolate Belarus from the global community."
The U.S. announcement follows earlier Friday's announcement by Britain of new sanctions against four individuals and three companies "in response to human rights violations and the ongoing facilitation of the illegal Russian invasion of Ukraine."

According to a statement from the Foreign Office, "sanctions have been imposed on seven individuals and other entities on the fourth anniversary of the heavily flawed 2020 presidential elections in Belarus as part of a coordinated effort with international partners, raising the total number of sanctions against Belarus to over 200."
Canada also announced sanctions against ten individuals and six entities, accusing them of supporting "the ongoing and systematic violations of human rights in Belarus," and supporting ongoing Russian war efforts.
The governments of the United States, Britain, Canada, and the European Union affirmed in a joint statement their "solidarity with the people of Belarus."
The European Union had imposed sanctions on 28 Belarusian officials earlier this week.
The joint statement added, "We will continue to consider our options, including imposing additional sanctions, to hold accountable those who enable Lukashenko's regime to suppress democracy in Belarus."
Since Lukashenko's re-election, a supporter and close ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin, Belarus has seen a wave of repression that has led to the imprisonment of more than 1,400 political opponents.

Thousands have also fled the country, according to the Viasna human rights organization.