What US sanctions on Belarus signalled in December 2020

What was happening around Belarus and its partners on 24 December 2020? The previous day, 23 December 2020, the Trump administration had imposed additional sanctions on Belarusian officials and four offices, citing human rights abuses during the protests against President Alexander Lukashenko.

The measures targeted individuals and institutions rather than the country as a whole. The stated grounds were abuses linked to the protests, which gave the sanctions a clear human rights rationale.

A separate crisis in Africa

On 21 December 2020, Rwanda deployed what it called a "protection force" to the Central African Republic after its peacekeepers were attacked by rebel forces advancing on the capital, Bangui. The Rwandan and Central African Republic governments accused former President François Bozizé of backing the rebels and plotting a coup. He denied the accusation. Russia also sent troops and heavy weaponry to support the government.

The two developments were unconnected in the reports, but both showed outside governments acting on political crises in the final days of 2020: Washington through sanctions on Belarus, and Rwanda and Russia through military deployments in Central Africa.