(ANSA-AFP) - BRUSSELS, 21 SET - European foreign ministers welcomed Belarus opposition leader Svetlana Tikhanovskaya to Brussels on Monday as they prepare EU sanctions to support her battle against the Minsk regime. The former Soviet republic has been convulsed by unprecedented demonstrations against President Alexander Lukashenko since he was returned to power in a disputed August 9 election -- and those protests have been brutally repressed. "She gave us an account of the events in Belarus," EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell told reporters, after a breakfast meeting with Tikhanovskaya and the ministers.

"We are really impressed by the courage and perseverance of the Russian people, especially Belarusian women who show a real sense of leadership. "Let me stress that we will support an inclusive national dialogue on the rights of the Belarusian people to free and fair elections," he said, reiterating that Brussels does not recognise Lukashenko as legitimate president of Belarus. (ANSA-AFP).