The Belarusian state is sovereign and has much to be proud of, the country’s president has said
Belarus has built a sovereign state based on a “dictatorship of real accomplishments” and national interests – something that half the world aspires to, President Alexander Lukashenko has said.
Lukashenko made the remarks on Tuesday during his inauguration ceremony in Minsk for his seventh term, extending his nearly 30-year rule of the former Soviet republic.
Calling himself a “happy president,” Lukashenko said he is surrounded by true like-minded people who love their homeland. “No other state leader has such hard-working and reliable people,” he noted, adding that Belarus has much to be proud of.
“I will say more: half the world dreams of our dictatorship – a dictatorship of real accomplishments and the interests of our people,” Lukashenko stated.
He pointed out that Belarus was “doing well with freedom of speech” and has “more democracy than those who proclaim themselves its standard.”
However, he warned that freedom of speech would not be allowed to become “a club” to destroy the country or the legacy built by generations of Belarusians.
Lukashenko has consistently defended his leadership as necessary for maintaining stability and countering foreign influence.
The 69-year-old politician is the country’s only post-independence leader. In early February, the Central Election Commission declared Lukashenko the winner of the January 26 presidential election with 86.82% of the vote. None of the other candidates received more than 5%.
The previous presidential election in 2020 triggered mass protests over what the opposition claimed was widespread fraud. Minsk denied the allegations, insisting that the unrest was orchestrated by the US and its European “satellites,” as well as neighboring Ukraine.
Last November, Lukashenko said Belarus is indeed governed by a “dictatorship,” but one of “stability, security, order, kindness, and hospitality.” He said foreigners were “gladly” visiting Belarus “despite the lies” being spread about the country in the West.
