MINSK, March 20 (RIA Novosti) - Newly re-elected Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko said Monday it would be very difficult to isolate his country economically.
"It would be very difficult to isolate Belarus and strangle it economically," he said. "More than 100 million tons of cargo are transited via Belarus. If the European Union wants problems, it will have them."
The European Union said Monday it was considering imposing sanctions on Belarus following Sunday's presidential elections. Lukashenko, dubbed "the last dictator in Europe" by the United States, was re-elected for a third term with 82.6% of the vote.
According to Lukashenko, the volumes of oil and natural gas passing through Belarus to Europe are continuing to grow.
The European Commission said repeatedly that if the international community deemed Sunday's elections in Belarus undemocratic, it would take new restrictive measures against the country's top officials.
