The strong arm leader, Alexander Lukashenko, sails to re -election

The tallest leader in Europe, President Alexander J. Lukashenko from Belarus, and raised his victory in the seventh elections in one row on Sunday in a competition to reject his exile opponents as shame, and his only goal was to strengthen his continuous grip on the former Soviet Republic, the closest ally of Russia.

“Do not use the word election to describe this farce,” said Svetlana Tikhanovskaya, an opposition leader He fled to Belarus after the country’s former presidential vote in 2020 and Brutality The protests at the country level on fraud in elections. “It is a phased performance by Lukashenko to cling to power at any cost.”

to survey Among the voters who leave the poll The places issued by the government media showed on Sunday evening that Mr. Lukashenko is getting 87.6 percent of the votes, or more than 81 percent, which he claimed won in 2020. Exit polls are controlled by the state, such as all aspects of the elections in Belarus, and generally reflects the end result.

Unlike the year 2020, when Mrs. Tikhanovskaya was allowed to run against Mr. Lukashenko and declared herself to the winner, on Sunday elections were a case subject to controlling and tamed it, which includes only candidates loyal to the president. no one By any desire to defeat Mr. Lukashenko, who ruled Belarus with an iron fist since 1994.

Four of the competing candidates, according to the exit survey, got less than two percent of the votes for each of them, with the exception of the Communist Party leader, Sergey Sierinkov, who received 2.7 percent.

With all the prominent opponents of Mr. Lukashenko either in prison or in the media in exile and belarus, the result was the result. But it is still important for the president, who is eager to show his country – as well as President Vladimir F. Putin from Russia – Disorders were tamed in 2020.

In a statement on Sunday, The head of the European Union’s foreign policy, Kaja Calas, described the elections as a “trick” that “was neither free and fair.”

But observers in the foreign elections, who were extracted from the right -wing political parties such as the alternative to Germany and other groups loyal to Russia, praised the vote as a victory for democracy and criticizing the election of the European Parliament and other institutions. “There is a dictatorship here, but I do not think that – the reality in Belarus is completely different,” Kraysu Farshov, an observer representing a marginal national party from Bulgaria, told the government news agency in Belarus. He added: “People are calm and easily communicate, in Europe, this is not at all.”

The elections were certainly calm, to the point that Mr. Lukashenko barely disturbed the campaign, saying that he was very busy participating in a discussion with four competitors who were chosen for the state or a gatherings. In reference to the traditional policy, last week, a decree raising 10 percent of pensions raising 10 percent starting from February 1.

A A recent survey of public opinion in Belarus from Chatham HouseIt is a British research group, which indicated widespread discontent with the economy, which was severely struck The economic sanctions imposed on the country because of its support for Ukraine’s invasion of Russia in February 2022. Only 11 percent of the respondents were certainly satisfied with the economy, while only 32 percent said they support Russia’s invasion.

Mr. Lukashenko’s main call, according to the survey, is his “favorable image” as “a politician who seeks to prevent Belarus from participating in the military conflict after the Russian invasion of Ukraine.”

The Russian forces used Belarus as a starting land for a preliminary and failed orientation towards Kiev in early 2022, but Mr. Lukashenko resisted pressure from Moscow to send Belarus forces to join the battle against Ukraine.

After voting on Sunday in Minsk, the capital of Belarus, Mr. Lukashenko expected that “there will be a kind of decision this year,” adding that President Trump “is not a fool and not a fool” and is recognized by this “You cannot push us”, referring to Belarus and Russia. “We will see the light at the end of the tunnel this year,” he said.

On Sunday, all his nominal competitors have avoided the criticism of Mr. Lukashenko, who did not oppose any open opposition and embraced his title “The last of Europe’s dictator”,Red it in 2005 by the US Secretary of State at the time, Condoleezza Rice.

While it was pleased with the West, especially the neighboring Poland, and his loyalty to Moscow, Mr. Lukashenko indicated in recent months a desire to improve the lukewarm relations with Western capitals by The launch of political prisoners.

This operation, which aims to obtain relief from Western sanctions, continued on Friday when Mr. Lukashenko received 15 other prisoners, including five people who were imprisoned for “extremist crimes”, a blanket term used to describe the president’s criticism. The names of those released were not published.

Foreign Minister Marco Rubio, In the publication of social media On Sunday, they indicated that they included a citizen of the United States called Anastasia Norfar, “which was transferred under the leadership of Joe Biden!” Mr. Rubio said it was “unilaterally released” thanks to President Trump’s leadership.

None of the most prominent opponents of Mr. Lukashinko, who are among the husband of Mrs. Tikhanskaya, Sergey. The United States and the European Union left sanctions.

In a sign that the authorities hope to obtain a more sympathetic hearing from the new Trump administration, government media in Belarus said last week that, after the opening in Washington, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs had witnessed She was removed from her website Criticism of Sunday’s elections made by the outgoing foreign minister, Anthony Blinkne.

The deleted statement of Mr. Blinken condemned the Belarus elections as a farce, saying: “The United States joins many of our European allies in assessing that the elections cannot be reliable in an environment where control is everywhere and independent media that no longer exist.”