Journalist of Ukraine's weekly newspaper Zerkalo Nedeli (Mirror Weekly) Volodymyr Kravchenko says the Ukrainian authorities are not in contact with President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko, yet they do not plan to impose sanctions against him.
According to the journalist, the relevant move is due to Lukashenko's possible retaliatory actions in the sphere of Ukrainian-Belarusian trade and economic relations.
At the same time, Kyiv also does not intend to meet with the Belarusian opposition leaders because of their pro-Russian stance.
Read alsoLukashenko warns Ukraine of sanctions, criticizes Zelensky for playing along with West"[Svetlana] Tikhanovskaya, [Maria] Kolesnikova and others take a pro-Russian position on important issues for our country concerning an adequate assessment of the Russian Federation's actions in Ukraine. In particular, Crimea. We will not contact them," a source in the President's Office told the publication.
Other sources in the President's Office and the Foreign Ministry explain that given the current moods of the opposition leaders in Belarus, if they come to power, their policy toward Ukraine will not differ from that pursued by Lukashenko.
"And what are we achieving by developing contacts with them? Especially if Lukashenko continues to remain in power?" the officials claim.
According to the media, experts doubt that the next president of Belarus to come to power with Russia's support will be more democratic than Lukashenko.
Protests in Belarus: Key events
- On August 9, presidential elections were held in Belarus. The country's Central Election Commission announced the final election results. In particular, 80.1% of voters supported incumbent President Alexander Lukashenko, 10.1% voted for his rival, Svetlana Tikhanovskaya, 1.67% for Anna Kanopatskaya, 1.2% for Andrey Dmitriev, and 1.14% for Sergei Cherechnya. Some 4.59% voted against all candidates.
- Thousands have taken to the streets to protest what many believe was a rigged vote count. Riot police violently crack down on protesters, detain them and open politically motivated cases against opposition-minded activists.
- The European Union declared non-recognition of the Belarus election results and imposed sanctions against Belarusian officials in response to vote rigging and the use of violence against protesters.
- On September 23, a secret ceremony of Lukashenko's inauguration was held in Minsk.
