The leading political parties of the European Parliament (EP) issued a joint statement on non-recognition of the official election results in Belarus. The document was signed by MPs from the European People's Party, Renewed Europe, the Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats, as well as representatives of the Greens and European Conservatives and Reformists.

“The presidential elections on August 9 were neither free nor fair, and reliable reports point to the victory of Svetlana Tikhanovskaya. Therefore, we do not recognize Alexander Lukashenko as the re-elected President of Belarus and consider him persona non grata in the European Union, ”the statement says.

The deputies suggested that the EU leadership appoint a special representative for Belarus to support "the process of peaceful transfer of power in accordance with the will of the Belarusian people." The EP members called on Brussels to resist the possible "interference" of Russia, as well as to impose sanctions against those responsible for the use of violence and "falsification".

Earlier, the head of European diplomacy Josep Borrell, the President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen and representatives of the leadership of some Western countries, including the United States, spoke about the need to introduce restrictive measures.

The head of the European Council Charles Michel announced the convening of a summit of the leaders of the EU countries on the situation in Belarus. The meeting will take place via videoconference on August 19. At the same time, Michel called on the negotiators not to interfere in the internal affairs of the republic.

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg also commented on the situation in Belarus. He stated that the North Atlantic Alliance is not building up forces near the western borders of the republic and respects its sovereignty.

Western mobilization

According to the Central Election Commission of Belarus, 80.1% of voters voted for Lukashenka in the August 9 elections, and opposition candidate Svetlana Tikhanovskaya received 10.1% of the vote. Citizens, dissatisfied with the announced results, began to organize massive unauthorized rallies, strikes at factories and clashes with the police.

On August 17, at a meeting with workers at the Minsk Wheel Tractor Plant (MZKT), the current president said he was not going to give up power under pressure from the street. However, he expressed his readiness to transfer his powers after the adoption of the new constitution.

“A new constitution is needed. I was offered two options. I rejected them because they differ little from this one. We are working on the third one. Come, sit down, and work on a constitution, and submit it to a referendum. And I will hand over my powers on the constitution to you, ”Lukashenka said.

Speaking on August 16 at a rally in his support, the Belarusian leader emphasized the inadmissibility of interference in the internal affairs of the state by the West and Eastern European countries.

A number of Western European states also did not recognize the results of the elections in Belarus. British Foreign Minister Dominic Raab said that London, together with its partners, intends to agree on sanctions against Minsk. 

On August 17, in an interview with Bild, the Minister of Finance and Vice-Chancellor of the Federal Republic of Germany, Olaf Scholz, said that Lukashenka "no longer has legitimacy", as he resorts to "incredible harshness and violence." 

French President Emmanuel Macron adheres to a similar point of view on the situation in Belarus. On his Twitter page, he wrote that "the European Union must continue to mobilize together with hundreds of thousands of Belarusians."

The official representative of the Russian Foreign Ministry, Maria Zakharova, called the appeal published by Macron a hypocrisy. The diplomat reminded the French leader of the massive yellow vest protests, which were suppressed by the police, but did not meet with support from the authorities of Western states.

“When will he ask the European Union to continue mobilizing together with hundreds of thousands of yellow vests who, at peaceful demonstrations, seek to respect their rights, freedoms and sovereignty? When will the European Union stop waiting for the requests of the presidents of the member states and begin to proactively mobilize to support the protest actions in its space? " - wrote Zakharova on her Facebook page.

  • Protest action in Belarus
  • Reuters
  • © Vasily Fedosenko

As noted by experts interviewed by RT, Western Europe was in no hurry with categorical assessments of the events in Belarus. But in the end, Great Britain, France and Germany joined the emerging alliance against Lukashenko, which, in addition to Washington, initially included the US's eastern European allies - Poland, Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia.

“With regard to Belarus, the united West is now acting according to the standard scheme, which consists in non-recognition of the legitimate election results, in supporting the protest and shaking the situation inside the country. The stable political situation in Belarus is in the interests of Russia, which means that the West will oppose this, ”political analyst Anna Aryamova said in an interview with RT.

"Solidarity response"

In an interview with RT, MGIMO professor Elena Ponomareva suggested that the scenario of pressure on Minsk and destabilization of the situation inside the republic could be written by the United States, which has rich experience in organizing revolutions and protest movements in the post-Soviet space.

From the expert's point of view, the key executors of the American plan to sway the situation in Belarus are Lithuania and Poland. The rest of the "representatives of the so-called Western democracies" share the US plans and provide more diplomatic support, argues Ponomareva.

“The roles of initiators of all the destructive processes that are currently taking place in Belarus are assigned primarily to Poland and Lithuania. Apparently, they received carte blanche from the United States to sway the situation, "Ponomareva emphasized.

On August 17, US President Donald Trump called the situation in Belarus "terrible". According to him, the United States is closely following the development of events in the republic.

On August 15, during a visit to Warsaw, the head of the State Department, Mike Pompeo, said that the US was discussing the situation in Belarus with its European allies in order to help the citizens of the republic achieve "sovereignty and freedom." According to him, the United States has already discussed a "solidarity response" with the Polish leadership.

In addition, the United States is establishing contacts with the Belarusian opposition. So, on August 18, entrepreneur Valery Tsepkalo, not admitted to the elections, and American senators will hold a closed online meeting. Lukashenko's opponent claims that among the interlocutors there will be congressmen and senators who are "interested in the situation in Belarus."

In a commentary on RT, Pyotr Petrovsky, an employee of the Institute of Philosophy of the National Academy of Sciences of Belarus, noted that Washington is pursuing a two-faced policy towards Minsk. The expert stressed that before the elections, representatives of the US leadership praised Belarus for steps towards democratization, and now they criticize it for violations of civil and political rights, ignoring the arguments of the official authorities.  

“The Americans, through the mouth of the ambassador, said that moderate democratization was taking place in Belarus. At the same time, at the moment, the United States, together with the Europeans, does not recognize the election results. Yes, it was expected, and in principle Minsk was ready for such a turn. But with their volatile behavior, the Americans have shown that they are not worried about human rights, but the promotion of their own interests, ”Petrovsky said.

Recall, on February 1, 2020, at a meeting with Lukashenko, Pompeo said that the United States "wants to help Belarus to be a sovereign state." He stressed that Washington and Minsk are approaching the lifting of the sanctions regime, which has been in effect since 2008. Also during the negotiations, an agreement was reached on the exchange of ambassadors.

  • US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo at a meeting with Alexander Lukashenko
  • Reuters
  • © Kevin Lamarque / Pool

“Today the USA and the EU are engaged in aestheticization of protests in the republic, turn a blind eye to bullying and persecution of families of employees of precinct commissions, the Central Election Commission, and law enforcement agencies. The activities of the security officials are assessed exclusively in a negative way, although, like in any other country in the world, they are obliged to suppress illegal activities, "Petrovsky said.

From the point of view of Anna Aryamova, the United States and its allies "straddled" the protest wave. The expert does not exclude that the events in Belarus may take on a more aggressive character, be accompanied by a blockade of the actions of state authorities and the emergence of “sacred victims of the dictatorial regime”.

In general, according to the expert, what is happening in the republic has a certain similarity with the "Ukrainian scenario" with the difference that the West has not invested such a large amount of finance in destabilizing the republic for a long period of time.

“On the one hand, the dissatisfaction with Alexander Lukashenko is great, and the protests have objective grounds. However, the protesters on the streets of Minsk and other cities do not want to think about what will happen next. And this, by analogy with Ukraine, is a scenario of the collapse of the country, the plunder of its resources. These processes are in the interests of Western elites. They count on the coming to power in Belarus of their protégés, ”Aryamova summed up.