Oleg Nikolenko, a spokesman for Ukraine's Foreign Ministry, on Jan. 12 denied media reports that Ukraine had asked the EU to exempt Belarus from the latest sanctions package imposed for the invasion of Ukraine.
Earlier in the day, RFE/RL journalist Rikard Jozwiak reported, citing unnamed sources familiar with the matter, that Belarus had not been included in the latest EU sanctions package at Kyiv's request.
Belarus has participated in Russia's aggression by allowing Russian troops to use its territory for attacks against Ukraine.
Nikolenko said that a number of Belarusian individuals involved in Russia's aggression against Ukraine had been sanctioned in the previous rounds of sanctions.
"Ukraine and its partners are now actively working to make the tenth EU sanctions package as meaningful as possible," he said.
He said that Kyiv is aware of the discussion between the EU member states regarding further synchronization of sanctions imposed on Russia.
He added that there is currently no consensus within the bloc.
On Jan. 9, Ukraine's Prime Minister Denys Shmyhal said Ukraine expects the EU to impose sanctions on Russia's nuclear industry, specifically the state nuclear operator Rosatom, in its next package of measures against the country.
The most recent package of EU sanctions against Russia, which was approved in December, includes restrictions in the export, banking, broadcasting, consulting services, energy, and mining sectors, as well as individual sanctions.
