President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky said that in the place of the Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko, he would hold repeated elections in the country. He stated this in an interview with Euronews TV channel.

According to Zelensky, such a step would help resolve the crisis and dispel possible doubts about the fairness of the voting results.

“Let's imagine that I am confident in myself, I am confident in the choice of the people. I am a confident person. How can you calm everyone down? I would definitely say: in a month there will be new elections. I'm going. Go who wants to. International observers - I would invite everyone, everyone. And I would tell the people of Belarus: please, choose, ”he answered the journalist's question.

“And after such a result, no one would have questions. I am sure about that. If Alexander Grigorievich had won, he would have won. And if someone else would win, then someone else would. But everything would be calm, without blood, honestly and would go down in history, "Zelensky said.

Let us remind you that the presidential elections were held in Belarus on August 9. According to the published data of the country's CEC, the incumbent head of state Alexander Lukashenko won 80.1% of the vote. Of his opponents, Svetlana Tikhanovskaya received the greatest support - 10.12%.

After the announcement of preliminary results, mass protests began in the republic. People who were dissatisfied with the organization of the elections and the voting results took to the streets of a number of cities in the country. In places, the protests escalated into riots and clashes between demonstrators and security forces. 

To gallery page

Against the backdrop of the crisis, on August 19, a summit of the leaders of the European Union was held, following which it became known about the EU's decision to soon impose sanctions against "a significant number of those responsible for the violence in the republic and election fraud." The European Parliament said that the elections held in Belarus were "neither free nor fair." The decision of the EU foreign ministers was also supported by the head of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, who called for additional sanctions against “those who violated democratic values ​​and human rights” in Belarus.

In turn, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Ukraine issued a statement that the officially announced results of the elections in Belarus "do not inspire confidence in the Belarusian society." The ministry added that "they generally share the position expressed by the European Union regarding the elections."

However, as early as August 16, Alexander Lukashenko, speaking at a rally of his supporters in Minsk, ruled out the possibility of holding a repeat presidential election in the country, saying that then Belarus "will perish as a state." Later, during a visit to the Minsk Wheel Tractor Plant (MZKT), he allowed new elections to be held in the republic, but only after the adoption of a new Constitution.

Political scientist Ivan Mezyukho, in a conversation with RT, expressed the opinion that the statement of Vladimir Zelensky is not applicable to the current political situation in Belarus, and recalled that the head of the Ukrainian state during his presidency is gradually losing electoral positions.

“If Zelenskiy himself was a successful president and had a sufficient level of respect within his country, then he might be able to give some advice to his neighbors. Kiev is trying to show solidarity with the protesters in Belarus. And in this sense, we are witnessing the deterioration of interstate relations between Ukraine and Belarus, ”the expert noted.

The fact that political changes should take place in Belarus is obvious, but this is an internal issue of the country, which should be resolved by the Belarusians themselves without external interference, Mezyuho stressed.

It should be noted that, according to the Kiev International Institute of Sociology, the actions of Volodymyr Zelensky in May were approved by 47% of citizens, in June - 38%, and in July - 40%.

According to the results of a poll by the sociological group "Rating", which is cited by RIA Novosti, by the end of July the electoral rating of the President of Ukraine was 30.2%.

According to economist and political scientist Oleksandr Dudchak, Zelensky's rhetoric about the possibility of a repeat election in Belarus "works for Ukraine's strategic current partners." He also expressed the opinion that Lukashenka's consent to a new vote would be a mistake.

“They (the opposition. - RT ) will be able to achieve that there will not be 80%, this is understandable. And then there will be accusations that the previous figures were invalid, ”the expert explained.

In addition, Ivan Mezyukho noted that the situation in Belarus is somewhat reminiscent of the events that took place in Ukraine in 2013-2014, and expressed the opinion that the majority of Belarusians understand what the “reforms” in Ukraine have led to.

“The problem is that the political majority is always passive, while the minority is aggressive. And in this case, this minority in Belarus creates a picture for the Western media. Therefore, the protests that are taking place in the republic today are not a true expression of the opinion of the entire people of Belarus, and this must be understood, "the expert summed up.