CRS-18 “ensure that the will of the people of Zimbabwe is respected,” and suggested that the regional body would meet again soon to discuss Zimbabwe.81 The U.N. Security Council held a special session on April 29 to discuss Zimbabwe, reportedly at the behest of incoming Security Council chair Britain. European and Latin American members pressed for a U.N. envoy to visit the country, while other delegations, including South Africa’s, rejected the proposal. President Mugabe has denounced the closed session as “sinister, racist, and colonial.”82 On June 22, the Council issued a Presidential Statement condemning the violence and acts of political repression by the Government of Zimbabwe. On July 8, 2008, the Group of Eight (G8) nations, many of whom already have bilateral sanctions in place, agreed to impose sanctions against the Mugabe regime due to the ongoing violence. The G8's announcement set the stage for a U.S.-sponsored resolution in the U.N. Security Council. The resolution calls for targeted sanctions on 14 members of the Mugabe regime, and an international arms embargo. It also requests the appointment of a U.N. Special Representative on Zimbabwe, and the creation of a Panel of Experts to monitor and evaluate the situation and the effect of the sanctions. South Africa's Ambassador has repeatedly expressed reservations about imposing sanctions. U.S. Policy on Zimbabwe Current U.S. Policy. Although the United States’ ability to influence internal developments in Zimbabwe is limited, the U.S. government has been an outspoken critic of the Mugabe Administration. U.S. policy toward Zimbabwe has included a combination of targeted sanctions against the Government of Zimbabwe, including financial and visa sanctions against select individuals;83 a ban on transfers of defense items and services; a suspension of non-humanitarian assistance to the government; and support for South Africa’s mediation between the parties. In reaction to the uncertainty following the March elections, the Bush Administration repeatedly called for the immediate release of the results, and in April called for all parties to accept and implement legitimate election results, “including, as appropriate, changes in the parliament, changes in the government.”84 The State Department has since registered “deep concern” about the inadequate “chain of custody” of the ballot boxes in the weeks after the election, and has expressed its view that conditions on the ground would not currently allow for a free and fair runoff. Assistant Secretary of State Jendayi Frazer has accused Mugabe of “trying 81 “Spotlight Turned on Zimbabwe at UN Council,” Reuters, April 16, 2008. 82 “Zimbabwe Dismisses U.N. Talks,” Reuters, April 30, 2008. 83 President Bush imposed these sanctions through Executive Order 13288, issued in March 2003. The Order prohibits transactions with persons, entities, or organizations found to be undermining democratic institutions and processes in Zimbabwe, who are included in a Specially Designated Nationals(SDN) list maintained by the U.S. Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC). 84 News Briefing by State Department Spokesman Tom Casey on April 22, 2008.