G8 Plans Sanctions Against Zimbabwe

Jul 8th, 2008 12:17 PM UTC
By Nora Coghlan

On the second day of the Japan summit, G8 leaders promised to pursue targeted sanctions against members of the Zimbabwean government.

G8 leaders pledged, in an official statement to “take further steps…introducing financial and other measures against those individuals responsible for violence.” They also called for a special UN Security Council envoy to report on the situation in Zimbabwe and help mediate.

For the past week, the US and UK have been pushing for the UN Security Council to tighten targeted sanctions. The BBC reports that a sanctions package is expected to be presented to the UN by the weekend and that Russia, which has traditionally been against such sanctions, will not oppose it.

African leaders have expressed reservations against sanctions, favoring some sort of power-sharing unity government, which they called for last week at a two-day African Union Summit in Egypt.

Zimbabwe’s state media reported today that interparty-talks were to resume under the mediation of South African President Thabo Mbeki.

Opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai maintains that his party will not resume talks until the current Zimbabwe government halts all political violence and accepts that Tsvangirai won the first round of elections on March 29.

-Nora Coghlan

TAGS: 2008 G8 Japan Series, G8, Governance and Security, Japan, Zimbabwe