“Since Kyiv does not see the prerequisites for resuming contacts with Lukashenka, the question of recognizing his legitimacy is not relevant, says the spokesman of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs”, — write: www.radiosvoboda.org
In response to a journalist’s question, he said that the vote “would like to be called a presidential election, if there were grounds for it.”
“It is obvious to us that Alexander Lukashenko will continue to remain an ally and accomplice of Putin in his war against Ukraine, which is happening against the interests of the Belarusian people. We believe that both dictators will continue to imitate the violent struggle against the so-called “threats of the collective West” with which they intimidate their citizens and which have no basis,” he said.
Since Kyiv does not see any prerequisites for resuming contacts with Lukashenka, the issue of recognizing his legitimacy is not relevant, says Tykhi.
Read also: Hungary and Slovakia refuse to sign the EU’s joint statement on the elections in Belarus – sources
“We are also in solidarity with the position of the member states of the European Union, the USA, Canada, Great Britain and other democratic countries regarding the current lack of basic conditions for holding fair and transparent elections in accordance with OSCE standards in Belarus. Today, there are no such conditions and there are no honest and real elections,” said the spokesman of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
He also reminded that a large number of citizens of Belarus who are abroad are actually deprived of the right to participate in the elections. They are also unable to return to their country due to the threat of persecution.
The representative of the ministry expressed the opinion that the Belarusian people deserve the right to choose power in democratic and free elections and “to build their own future without the dictates of Russia”:
“We are also grateful to those Belarusians, and we know about them, value them, respect them, who today together with the Ukrainian people, in particular, with weapons in their hands, by the way, are giving a worthy rebuff to Russian aggression. We believe that by doing so, they also bring real democratic changes in their own country closer.”
Read also: In Belarus, the Lukashenka regime punishes critics by taking away their children
The presidential election of Belarus is scheduled for January 26. Oleksandr Lukashenko, who has been in power in Belarus since 1994 and is a close ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin, announced his intention to run for president again at the beginning of last year.
A number of Western countries and institutions have already made statements that they do not intend to recognize their results. At its meeting on January 22, the European Parliament adopted a resolution on repression and illegitimate elections in Belarus.
Elections in Belarus are held in conditions of political crisis, large-scale repression and, according to international organizations, are unfree and undemocratic.
There are no officially registered opposition parties or independent public organizations left in Belarus. Since 2001, the international community and independent observers have not recognized the results of elections in Belarus.