U.S. faces hurdles in trying to nudge Belarus toward democracy

Hindered by frayed ties with Europe, limited leverage and doubts about President Donald Trump's devotion to democracy in Belarus, the United States is gingerly trying to nudge the former Soviet state toward new elections without provoking Russia. Current and former U.S. officials acknowledge the challenge of promoting change in Belarus, which faces protests over an Aug. 9 election that the opposition says was rigged to extend the 26-year-old reign of President Alexander Lukashenko. Lukashenko, who denies fraud, has responded with a violent crackdown on the protests and shown no sign of backing down despite sanctions imposed by three Baltic states on Monday and the threat of impending U.S. sanctions.

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