Azernews.Az

MINSK – The European Parliament has called on the European Union to expand sanctions on Belarus over its crackdown on the opposition, Radio Liberty reported.

The call came in a resolution endorsed overwhelmingly by the chamber in Strasbourg on Thursday.

All major political parties voted for the joint text that calls for the introduction of targeted economic sanctions against state-owned enterprises and an extension of restrictive measures against the regime of President Alyaksandr Lukashenka.

The document also supports an increase of the European Union's assistance to democratic opposition parties, civil society organizations, and independent media outlets.

The EU slapped travel bans and asset freezes on nearly 170 people, including Lukashenka, earlier this year in the wake of Minsk's violent crackdown on the opposition following Lukashenka's disputed reelection in December.

But Belarus has continued to put prominent opposition figures on trial -- including, to date, five of the candidates who challenged Lukashenka in the December 19 vote.

Charles Tannock is a member of the European Parliament from Britain who co-sponsored the resolution on Belarus. He told , Radio Liberty.ahead of Thursday's vote that the resolution could "keep the pressure up" on Belarus and continue to put the country under the international spotlight.

"The feeling is that matters have not improved, so the European Parliament understandably takes a very close interest in the Lukashenka regime and believes that it is sensitive to international opinion," Tannock said.