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Zimbabwe demands complete lifting of 'illegal' US sanctions

By Al Mayadeen English
Source: Agencies
7 Mar 2024 05:32
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Zimbabwe's government stresses that Washington must provide evidence to support their "gratuitous accusations".

A supporter of Zimbabwean President Emmerson Mnangagwa waves a national flag, during a Heroes' Day event to commemorate the lives of those who died in the southern African country's 1970s war against white minority rule, in Harare, Monday, Aug. 13, 2018. (AP Photo/Tsvangirayi Mukwazhi)

Zimbabwe on Wednesday demanded the United States lift "illegal" economic sanctions against it, saying new targeted measures against President Emmerson Mnangagwa and senior leaders were merely "palliative measures".

The US has imposed sanctions on Zimbabwe since the early 2000s, with former president George W. Bush arguing for tough measures against the southern African country then controlled by strongman Robert Mugabe.

On Monday, US President Joe Biden's administration imposed new sanctions on 11 Zimbabweans, including Mnangagwa and three companies, citing alleged rights abuses and corruption, replacing the previous broader measures. The decision blocks any assets the individuals hold in the United States and bars them from unofficial travel to the country.

Zimbabwe's government stressed that "all those measures were illegal and unjustified then; they remain so this very day and until they are unconditionally dropped."

Washington must provide evidence to support their "gratuitous accusations" and "nothing short of prompt, unconditional removal" of the "illegal coercive measures" will be acceptable to Zimbabwe, the government underlined.

It added that the lifting of the previous sanctions "can never atone for, let alone write off, heinous crimes committed against Zimbabwe," which "cannot be expected to thank" the United States for the "palliative measures" announced on Monday.

Zimbabwe blames US sanctions for the disastrous economic crisis that has afflicted the country for more than two decades. There were hopes of a defrost in relations between the two countries after Mnangagwa took power following Mugabe's ouster in 2017.