US considers travel sanctions against Zimbabwe

The United States is moving towards imposing travel sanctions against Zimbabwe, the State Department said today.

Spokesman Richard Boucher said the sanctions would focus on the individuals responsible for or who benefit from ‘‘policies that undermine Zimbabwe’s democratic institutions’’.

Boucher said financial sanctions were also being contemplated. A decision on whether to impose those sanctions depends on the conduct of the presidential elections in March, he said.

President Robert Mugabe, who has led Zimbabwe since independence in 1980, is seeking another term.

The EU, angered by Zimbabwe’s refusal to let its observers freely monitor the elections, imposed sanctions on Monday and ordered its observer team home.

Boucher said the US and the EU are concerned about the same issues: continuing political violence, human rights abuses, media restrictions, and government efforts to prevent a free and fair presidential election.