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US will use sanctions against Tunisia, expert warns

December 2, 2021 at 12:11 pm

Hundreds of Tunisians gather at Bardo Square near parliament to protest President Kais Saied’s power seizure in Tunis, Tunisia on 14 November 2021. [Nacer Talel – Anadolu Agency]

An expert on Tunisian affairs warned that the US will impose sanctions on the country if President Kais Saied does not bring an end to “the coup” he carried out and return to the democratic path, Arabi Post news site said.

According to the site, the US administration, through the delegation that had visited Tunisia and the contacts between Saied and Secretary of State Antony Blinken, has demanded Saied return government institutions, especially the parliament and constitutional bodies, and present a clear road map for the political path.

The US administration recently said that with regards to the Tunisian situation, democracy is the only available and acceptable mechanism.

The site quoted a private source as saying that the US might resort to the gradual implementation of sanctions against security and military figures if Saied insists on continuing his project.

Anouar Gharbi, general coordinator of the Swiss Initiative to Support Democracy in Tunisia, said: “The measures against the coup have already begun, with many manifestations including the exclusion of Tunisia from the call for dialogue at the Democracy Forum hosted by the United States on December 9-10, 2021.”

He added that Tunisia has also been excluded from the 2022 budget prepared by the Senate.

“The American embassy in Tunisia remains without a direct ambassador,” he added.

READ: Tunisia’s half coup and the idea of a counter-revolution