Presidentvalet i Belarus 9 augusti 2020

The Belarusian Foreign Ministry's statement accused the EU of "striving towards the deterioration of relations with us" and imposed its own set of sanctions against the block.

It is unclear how many EU officials have been sanctioned by Minsk as the list will not be made public.

"Belarus is always in words and in fact against confrontation. We are for dialogue and understanding. But as a sovereign state, we are also determined, albeit not without regret, to respond to unfriendly actions in order to naturally protect our national interests," the Foreign Ministry added.

It instead called on the bloc [EU] "to open borders for all Belarusians" and to "redouble joint efforts to combat common challenges, such as illegal migration, international crime and terrorism, the pandemic of infectious diseases and their socio-economic consequences".

The Belarusian opposition, led by Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, has founded a Coordination Council for the Transfer of Power.

It instead called on the bloc [EU] "to open borders for all Belarusians" and to "redouble joint efforts to combat common challenges, such as illegal migration, international crime and terrorism, the pandemic of infectious diseases and their socio-economic consequences".

Belarus cancels all accreditation for foreign journalists

The ministry also leaves the door open for more curbs on foreign media, emphasizing that the most important job of the new Belarusian "information security" policy is to ensure the country's "information sovereignty."

Belarus: Women stand up to Lukashenko