The European Commission said on Monday the OSCE election monitoring mission in Belarus had noted both positive indications and negative elements and urged the government to implement the watchdog's findings.
"I have taken note of the preliminary findings of the OSCE/ODIHR Election Observation Mission which includes both some positive indications but also a number of negative elements," EU External Relations Commissioner Benita Ferrero-Waldner said in a statement.
The EU had said it may consider easing or lifting sanctions if the poll was judged to have gone well. Western monitors said today the parliamentary election in which opposition candidates failed to win a single seat fell short of international standards despite "minor improvements".
Reuters