Presidential election in Belarus: concert of critics in Europe after Lukashenko's victory

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The President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen this Monday condemned the repression underway in Belarus and demanded an "exact" count of the votes cast in Sunday's presidential election. Neighboring countries have also responded to their concerns.

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In a message posted on Twitter, Ursula von der Leyen calls for transparency. She asks the Belarusian authorities to accurately count and publish the election votes.

The President of the European Commission also recalls that "  harassment and violent repression of peaceful demonstrators have no place in Europe  ". Reference to the 3,000 people arrested and dozens of wounded, Sunday evening in the capital Minsk.

Harassment & violent repression of peaceful protesters has no place in Europe.

Fundamental rights in #Belarus must be respected.

I call on the Belarusian authorities to ensure that the votes in yesterday's election are counted & published accurately.

The head of European diplomacy Josep Borrell for his part condemned "  disproportionate and unacceptable state violence against peaceful demonstrators  " and warned the Belarusian authorities: "  We will continue to closely monitor the development of the situation in order to assess how the EU could better orient its response and relations with Belarus in the light of developments . "

German doubts

Berlin, for its part, expressed Monday "  serious doubts  " about the conduct of the ballot. “  The minimum democratic criteria for an election have not been met,  ” said Steffen Seibert, spokesperson for Chancellor Angela Merkel.

The German government also condemned "  the use of force against peaceful demonstrators in Minsk and other cities in the country  ".

Poland in favor of a European summit

The first to react on election night, Poland and Lithuania called on Belarus to “  recognize and fully respect fundamental democratic criteria,  ” including freedom of expression.

Statement by the President of the Republic of Poland @AndrzejDuda and the President of Republic of Lithuania @GitanasNauseda https://t.co/u60IJiHunh

This Monday, Warsaw also called for a European summit devoted to the situation in the country. “  The authorities have used force against their citizens demanding a change in the country. We must support the Belarusian people in their quest for freedom,  ”the Polish Prime Minister said in a statement.

Mateusz Morawiecki announced that he had written to the President of the European Commission as well as to the President of the Council of the EU Charles Michel to request such a summit.

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• Alexander Lukashenko
• Belarus
• European Union
• Ursula von der Leyen
• Poland

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