The European Union (EU) stated on Friday that it would take "restrictive measures" against the newly re-elected Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko.

"The European Council has decided to take restrictive measures against those who are responsible for the violation of the international electoral standards, including President Lukashenko, " said Austrian Foreign Minister Ursula Plassnik, whose country currently holds the EU rotating presidency.

Plassnik told the closing press conference of the EU summit, which concluded here Friday, that the "restrictive measures" would include "a visa ban."

Earlier, the summit had issued a declaration condemning the actions of the Belarus authority towards demonstrators who had protested following the elections in the former Soviet republic.

"The European Council ... considers that the Presidential elections in Belarus on March 19 were fundamentally flawed. On a continent of open and democratic societies, Belarus is a sad exception," said the declaration.

"The European Council is therefore determined to take restrictive measures against those politically and administratively responsible for the violations of international electoral standards, in close coordination with our international partner," it added.

Source: Xinhua