The European Union (EU) on Monday asked the Belarusian authorities to ensure a free and fair presidential election in March and threatened to adopt " restrictive measures" against individuals responsible for fraudulence.

"The council (of foreign ministers) is continuing to closely monitor the situation in Belarus," said the ministers in a statement.

"The council restates its readiness to take further appropriate restrictive measures against the responsible individuals in the event of failure to uphold international standards in the electoral process, in particular those of the OSCE (Organization of Security and Cooperation in Europe)."

The EU and the United States have criticized all elections held in Belarus since 1996 as rigged. Both have also requested the incumbent Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko to explain the disappearance of prominent public figures in recent years.

The 25 EU foreign ministers on Monday welcomed Belarus' invitation to an election observation mission from OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights (ODIHR).

They asked the Belarusian authorities to allow the OSCE-ODIHR mission to operate unimpeded in Belarus and to ensure that all eligible candidates are allowed to register for the elections, to campaign freely and to enjoy equal access to state-controlled media.

They also demanded free media coverage of the electoral process.

The foreign ministers, however, reiterated the EU's willingness to have closer and better relations with Belarus "once the Belarusian authorities clearly demonstrate their willingness to respect democratic values, human rights and the rule of law."

Source: Xinhua