Britain on Monday imposed sanctions targeting Belarusian officials and defence companies after joining Western governments in condemning what they called "sham" presidential elections in the country.

Belarusians are voting in a closely-managed presidential election that is all but certain to extend the one-man rule of Alexander Lukashenko, in power since 1994 and Europe’s longest-serving leader.

No credible opponents were allowed to run against Alexander Lukashenko, who has ruled Belarus since the 1990s.

BRUSSELS (AP) — The European Union rejected the election in Belarus on Sunday as illegitimate and threatened new sanctions. Belarus held an orchestrated vote virtually guaranteed to give 70-year-old autocratic President Alexander Lukashenko yet another term on top of his three decades in power.

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio announced on Jan. 26 that Belarus had "unilaterally" released an American woman from detention, as Alexander Lukashenko is set to win a seventh term in office. Rubio identified the U.

EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Kaja Kallas, said that the elections in Belarus were illegitimate due to falsifications, repressions, and restrictions on citizens' rights.