Belarus leader warns EU not to meddle as rival seeks support

Bloomberg

Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko warned the European Union not to interfere in the country’s post-election crisis, as his opponent appealed to the bloc for support.
“There’s no need to point at Belarus today to divert attention from the problems that exist in France, the US, Germany and so on,” Lukashenko told his security council on Wednesday, according to the state-run Belta news service. “The leaders of the Western states offer us negotiations, conversations. And at the same time they continue to push their agenda.”
He spoke after opposition candidate Svetlana Tikhanovskaya urged European leaders to “support the awakening of Belarus” in a new video address in English from exile in Lithuania. “Mr Lukashenko has lost all the legitimacy in the eyes of our nation and the world,” she said.
The 27 EU leaders were expected to hold an emergency conference call on Wednesday to discuss the brutal crackdown on opposition protests that erupted after Lukashenko claimed a landslide victory in the August 9 election.
At least three people were killed as police beat demonstrators and detained nearly 7,000, allegedly torturing some of those in custody. Undeterred, hundreds of thousands of people have taken to the streets in the capital, Minsk, and other cities to demand Lukashenko’s resignation.
Lukashenko has refused to bend under the pressure and appealed to Russia for support. In a show of force, he ordered the military to deploy in “full combat readiness” to Belarus’s EU borders on the eve of the leaders’ summit, complaining of unspecified security threats.
Belarus authorities haven’t asked for Russian assistance under a collective defense pact, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told reporters on a conference call on Wednesday.
Russia has ramped up its rhetoric in recent days, warning the West against geopolitical interference, even as it has held back so far from public steps to shore up Lukashenko.
Russia sees attempts at outside interference in Belarus as part of a struggle for influence in the countries of the former Soviet Union, Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said in an interview with state TV.
“This does not mean the election was perfect,” Lavrov said, according to a transcript on the ministry’s website.
“This is also recognised by the Belarusian leadership, which is trying to start a dialogue with citizens protesting against what they consider to be infringements of their rights.”
After keeping a low profile for several days, riot police began to secure some locations in Belarus’s capital, Minsk, on Wednesday as protests continued in support of opposition calls for Lukashenko to resign.
The increased police presence came as Lukashenko ordered the Interior Ministry to enforce order in the capital, according to Belta. “There should be no more riots in Minsk,” Lukashenko said. “People are tired, people demand peace and quiet.”
The EU has said the election was neither “free nor fair.” According to one official, the
leaders may decide to call for a new vote and reinforce the need for sanctions with a view that their credibility is at stake with an escalating conflict at their doorsteps.
The nation’s president Alexander Lukashenko is defiant as strikes grow across Belarus and the opposition leader addresses EU leaders.