[ad_1]
“The United States is deeply concerned about August 9. The presidential elections in Belarus, which were not free and equal,” Pompeo said in a statement.
“We strongly condemn the ongoing violence against protesters and the arrest of opposition supporters and the shutdown of the Internet to prevent the Belarusian people from sharing information about the elections and demonstrations,” he added.
Pompeo also criticized the country’s restrictions on candidates and a ban on independent election observers from monitoring the elections.
Kayleigh McEnany, press secretary to US President Donald Trump, said that “intimidation of opposition candidates and the arrest of peaceful protesters” were among the many factors that “ruined the process.”
“We call on the Belarusian authorities to respect the right of peaceful assembly and refrain from the use of force,” he said.
Lukashenko, who has been in charge of Belarus for a quarter of a century, reportedly won the elections. Militia and security officials are forcibly cracking down on protests claiming that the election results were rigged, and the real winner is opposition spokeswoman Svetlana Tichanovskaya.
No part of this publication may be reproduced without the written permission of ELTA.
[ad_2]
