A referendum in Belarus on Sunday (February 27th) approved a new constitution that does away with the country's obligation to remain a "nuclear-free zone", Russian news agencies reported.

Russian news agencies cited Belarus' Central Election Commission, which said 65.2% of participants voted in favor of the text.

The result is hardly surprising, given the tight control exercised by Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko.

The new constitution could allow nuclear weapons on Belarusian soil for the first time since the country renounced them after the fall of the Soviet Union.

At the end of January, the United States were alarmed that this reform would allow the deployment of Russian nuclear weapons in this country bordering Ukraine and Poland.

>> To read on France24.com: Belarus, Moscow's new outpost to put pressure on Europe

The West has already declared that it will not recognize the result of this referendum, which takes place against the backdrop of a massive crackdown on opponents of the government.

According to human rights defenders, there were more than a thousand political prisoners in Belarus on Sunday.

In power until 2035

Other proposed constitutional changes include lifelong legal immunity for former presidents, and the introduction of a two-term presidential limit for successors to Alexander Lukashenko, who has ruled the country with an iron fist since 1994.

If the constitution did not envisage a limit before, this new limit would apply from the entry into office of a new president, which would allow Alexander Lukashenko to remain in power until 2035 if he is re-elected in 2025.

The referendum sparked anti-war protests in several cities.

At least 290 people have been arrested, according to human rights defenders.

The re-election of Alexander Lukashenko to the presidency in August 2020 sparked a historic protest movement in this former Soviet republic, violently repressed by the authorities, who carried out mass arrests, liquidations of media and NGOs .

In Russia, a constitutional reform adopted in 2020 paved the way for President Vladimir Putin to stay in power until 2036.

With AFP and Reuters

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