Credit:  europe-diplomatic.eu/  Alexander Grigoryevich Lukashenko, President of Belarus

DIPLOMATIC  TIMES STAFF

The U.S. no longer recognizes Aleksandr Lukashenko as the legitimate president of Belarus, the State Department said in a statement on Wednesday amid the country’s disputed election in August.  Longtime incumbent President Lukashenko won 80.23% of the vote, with main rival challenger Svetlana Tikhanovskaya receiving 9.9%.   Critics  immediately denounced Lukashenko’s landslide victory as being rigged and mass protests erupted with thousands taking to the streets of capital city Minsk and across the country to vent frustration. 

“The United States cannot consider Aleksandr Lukashenko the legitimately elected leader of Belarus. The path forward should be a national dialogue leading to the Belarusian people enjoying their right to choose their leaders in a free and fair election under independent observation.”

— State Department spokesperson

Tikhanovskaya  fled the country in the aftermath of the disputed presidential elections.  Tikhanovskaya left Belarus and is in Lithuania after she asserted that the re-election of Lukashenko  was fraudulent. 

European Parliament Calls For Adoption of Effective Sanctions on Belarus Without Delay

MEPs called for new presidential elections in Belarus and urged the European Union to sanction President Lukashenko. Backing Belarusian opposition leader Tikhanovskaya, the EPP Group joined with other political forces last week  in the European Parliament in a virtual event with her to show their support. The EPP Group and other MEPs call for an end to the crackdown by the government of  Lukashenko, who sparked more than a month of protests after claiming a re-election victory after a rigged vote. MEPs are calling for new elections and EU sanctions to pressure the government.  Tsikhanouskaya has urged the international community including the United Nations to impose sanctions on individuals in the Belarus government of President Lukashenko