Exclusive: EU Lending Arm EIB To Halt Belarus Lending – Source

Marin said more than 10,000 people have been “abusively arrested”, with more than 500 reports of torture and thousands “savagely beaten”, since President Alexander Lukashenko claimed victory in a presidential election on Aug. 9.

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) which is majority-owned by EU countries and institutions, but also has Russia, the United States and other top governments as shareholders, said it was “deeply concerned” about the situation, though wouldn’t comment further on its lending.

The EBRD invested 160 million euros in Belarus in the first half of 2020, more than double the 67 million euros it spent in the first half on 2019.

A former Soviet collective farm manager, the authoritarian Lukashenko has ruled Belarus since 1994 but has battled a wave of anger over his handling of the COVID-19 pandemic, the economy and his human rights record.