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On September 17, the President of Belarus, Alexander Lukashenko, announced that he will close the borders with two neighboring countries that are part of the European Union, Lithuania and Poland. A few hours earlier, the European Parliament had voted on a resolution to impose sanctions on Belarus for the violent crackdown on protests that take place for six weeks and to question the results of the controversial presidential elections on August 9, which the same resolution declared not recognize.
In his announcement, Lukashenko did not mention Latvia, also a member of the European Union, while saying that the military presence on the border with Ukraine will be strengthened. In the resolution approved by majority, the European Parliament calls for new presidential elections in Belarus and urges the European Union to sanction President Alexander Lukashenko. The resolution obtained 574 votes in favor, 37 against and 82 abstentions.
The resolution also does not recognize the official results of the “so-called presidential elections” in Belarus on August 9 this year. According to the European Parliament, these elections were held “in violation of all internationally recognized standards”. When Lukashenko’s term expires on November 5, the European Parliament will no longer recognize him as President of Belarus.
Lukashenko criticized the decision of the European Parliament not to recognize the results of the presidential elections, arguing that it had held elections “based on the constitution and laws of our country” and did not need recognition “from anyone.”
Lukashenko’s announcement comes after meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Sochi, Russia, on September 15. Putin said his country would support Lukashenko and his government by lending Belarus $ 1.5 billion. The meeting, which lasted about four hours, was the first between Putin and Lukashenko after the disputed Belarusian elections and was the first time in these two months that Lukashenko left the country.
Meanwhile, protests continue in Belarus. Not only on the streets, but also on the internet. Some of the main independent Belarusian media outlets left the homepage images of their newspapers blank in protest at the arrests of journalists. Instead of an opening image, on the website of Belsat, a Polish free-to-air satellite television channel in Belarus, said: “There must have been a photo here. Photojournalists Alyaksandr Vasyukovich and Uladz Hrydzin were sentenced to 11 days in prison ”.
In addition, on Thursday some groups of protesters, mainly women, began to respond to the violence of the police trying to remove the ski masks with which they cover their faces during the repression of the protests. The agents reacted by trying to get away and covering their faces with their hands to avoid being recognized.
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