Macron reaffirms that Belarusian President "Lukashenko must go"

Emmanuel Macron, in Longjumeau on September 23, 2020. -

Emmanuel Macron intends to bend Alexander Lukashenko.

From Monday to Wednesday, he will make his first visit to Lithuania and Latvia, two Baltic states which hope for his support in the face of the political crisis in Belarus and Russian pressure.

Prior to this trip, the Head of State said in an interview with

that the Belarusian president "must leave".

Belarusian women "command respect"

"What is happening in Belarus is a crisis of power, an authoritarian power which cannot accept the logic of democracy and which clings by force", explains Emmanuel Macron.

He also said he was "impressed by the courage of the demonstrators" in Belarus.

"They know the risks they take by parading every weekend and yet they are continuing the movement to bring democracy to life in this country which has been deprived of it for so long", adds the president, for whom "women in in particular, who parade every Saturday, command respect ”.

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Regarding the role of Russian President Vladimir Putin in the search for a solution to the political crisis after the contested re-election of President Lukashenko on August 9, Emmanuel Macron considers that we are still far from the mark.

“It turns out that I spoke to Vladimir Putin on September 14, the day he received Lukashenko in Sochi.

I told him that Russia has a role to play, and this role can be positive if it pushes Lukashenko to respect the truth of the ballot box and to release political prisoners.

It was two weeks ago, we are not there ”.

Possible meeting with Svetlana Tikhanovskaïa

The European Union like the Baltic countries did not recognize the election of Lukashenko and Lithuania gave refuge to the leader of the Belarusian opposition Svetlana Tikhanovskaïa.

The French presidency indicated that it was “not excluded” that the president would meet the opponent in Vilnius.

Svetlana Tikhanovskaya, for her part, declared Thursday in

she "expects a lot" from the French president and hopes that he "is committed to helping us break the deadlock".

During his tour in the Baltic countries, Emmanuel Macron is due to meet his Lithuanian counterparts Gitanas Nauseda and Latvian Egils Levits, as well as Latvian Prime Minister Arturs Krisjanis Kariņs.

The Head of State will also visit the contingent of 300 French soldiers stationed at the Lithuanian base in Rukla, as part of NATO's reinforced presence in the region.

He will end his visit with a roundtable discussion in Riga with experts in disinformation.

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