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- Russian President Vladimir Putin has told leaders of the European Union to stay out of the growing political crisis in longtime-ally Belarus
- Protests erupted across the country after longstanding leader Alexander Lukashenko claimed over 80 per cent of the votes in the latest Belarus election
- Lukashenko has been the President of Belarus since 1994, making him Europe’s longest-serving leader
- Protestors and opposition candidates are claiming the election was rigged
- However, despite the growing civil unrest, Putin has warned E.U. leaders that interfering in the former-Soviet republic’s political crisis will do more harm than good
- The Russian leader said any interference into Belarus’ domestic affairs would be “unacceptable”
Russian President Vladimir Putin has told leaders of the European Union to stay out of the growing political crisis in longtime-ally Belarus.
According to Putin’s media office, the Russian President warned against interference in Belarus in telephone calls to Germany’s Angela Merkel, France’s Emmanuel Macron, and E.U. President Charles Michel.
The Russian leader said any interference into Belarus’ domestic affairs would be “unacceptable.”
The warning comes as Belarus protestors take to the streets to defy Belarus’ longstanding president, Alexander Lukashenko.
What’s the uproar about?
Thousands of Belarusian citizens started to protest across the nation after the country’s August 9 election, which President Lukashenko claims to have won in a landslide.
Lukashenko is Europe’s longest-serving leader, having held office since 1994. On August 10, Lukashenko started his sixth term as president after claiming to have received a whopping 80.1 per cent of votes in the country’ lastest election.
It seems the protestors — and opposition leader Svetlana Tikhonovskaya — believe the election was rigged.
Months before the August elections, opposition candidate Nikolai Statkevich was jailed and barred from running for president after for protesting against Lukashenko’s re-election bid.
Now, Tikonovskaya has fled to Lithuania, allegedly fearing for her and her family’s safety.
On Sunday, some 200,000 people rallied in the capital city of Minsk to demand that President Lukashenko relinquish his power and step down from office.
Since the protests started, around 6700 people have been arrested, while two people have died and hundreds have been injured in clashes with riot police.
Further, U.K.-headquartered human rights group Amnesty International has reported that detained protesters are being subjected to torture in Belarus detention centres.
However, Vladimir Putin claims that interfering in the former-Soviet republic’s political crisis will do more harm than good.
What did Putin say?
According to Kremlin reports of the telephone calls between Putin and the E.U. leaders, the Russian President said any external interference in internal Belarusian affairs would escalate the crisis.
“Vladimir Putin expressed concern in connection with some countries’ attempts to put pressure on the Belarusian leadership and destabilise the internal political situation,” the President’s media office said.
“Interfering in the republic’s domestic affairs and putting pressure on the Belarusian leadership would be unacceptable.”
However, Russian analysts say the Kremlin has recognised that Lukashenko’s victory is no longer tenable and is looking for ways to transition the leadership of Belarus while still keeping close ties with Moscow.
In two separate statements, Putin has refused to offer explicit support to Lukashenko, despite having acknowledged his election victory.
