03/07/2017 (Agence Europe) – During the evening of Friday 30 June, the spokesperson for the European External Action Service (EEAS) condemned the decision of the Belarus Supreme Court to uphold the death sentence against Aliaksei Mikhalenia. "The continued application of the death penalty runs counter to Belarus' stated willingness to engage with the international community, including the European Union, on the matter", the EEAS spokesperson said in a press release. Mikhalenia was sentenced to death by a regional court in March for committing two particularly brutal murders. The EU "urges Belarus, the only country in Europe still applying capital punishment, to commute the remaining death sentences and to introduce, without delay, a moratorium on the death penalty as a first step towards its abolition", the spokesperson added, reiterating the EU's strong opposition to capital punishment. (CG)