Ukraine to call Lukashenka by first and last name alone
 |
| Alyaksandr Lukashenka and his son Viktar were put on the sanctions lists of Great Britain and Canada |
In Ukraine, the self-proclaimed President of Belarus Alyaksandr Lukashenka will be called only by his first and last name, without status.
Lukashenka was inaugurated for a fifth term on November 6, 2015. Therefore, the date of the end of his term of office is November 5, 2020. On this day, the Ukrainian authorities will start calling Alyaksandr Lukashenka only by his first and last name.
Ukrainian Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba commented on the phrases “illegally elected” and “illegitimate president”: “These are great wording for media headlines, for posts on Facebook … the official position is Alyaksandr Lukashenka”.
The first statements about non-recognition of the August 9 election results were made by diplomats of the Baltic countries, and later their position was supported by the head of the EU foreign policy, Josep Borrell.
The authorities of Germany, Poland, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Slovakia, Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia also did not recognize Alyaksandr Lukashenka as the head of the republic and the legitimate president. The representatives of these countries made official statements on September 23, after the politician’s secret inauguration.
On the eve of September 29, Alyaksandr Lukashenka and his son Viktar were put on the sanctions lists of Great Britain and Canada.
After the closure of polling stations on August 9, mass protests began in Belarus. The protesters were unhappy with the massive falsifications and demanded another election. At the protest rallies, security officials detained thousands of people, beat them. Some protesters are now dead.
After the elections, Alyaksandr Lukashenao began repressions against the opposition. His election rival Svyatlana Tsikhanouskaya was forced to leave Belarus, like some other opposition activists. Tsikhanoukaya’s companion Maryia Kalesnikava was taken into custody.
The European Union considers the elections to be rigged and does not recognize Lukashenka as the legitimate president of Belarus. The EU is in dialogue with the Coordination Council of the Belarusian opposition.