IMF keeping 'close watch' on Belarus after calls to limit reserve funds for country

FILE PHOTO: FILE PHOTO: A participant stands near a logo of IMF at the International Monetary Fund - World Bank Annual Meeting 2018 in Nusa Dua, Bali, Indonesia, October 12, 2018. REUTERS/Johannes P. Christo/File Photo/File Photo

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The International Monetary Fund (IMF) said on Thursday it was monitoring the situation in Belarus closely, amid calls for the global lender to limit disbursement of new emergency reserves to the hardline government of president Alexander Lukashenko.

Spokesman Gerry Rice said the lender was keeping close tabs on the matter, but the IMF was guided in its actions by the international community, which "continues to deal with the current government in the country."