Putin congratulates Łukašenka on “patriotic forces” victory

February 26, Pozirk. Russian President Vladimir Putin has congratulated Alaksandar Łukašenka “on the confident victory of the Belarusian patriotic forces” in the February 20-25 parliamentary and local elections.
“High voter turnout and the voting results clearly confirm the broad support for the harmonious socio-economic development course of Belarus under your leadership, ensuring domestic political stability and promotion of mutually beneficial integration within the Union State,” Putin’s press office quoted him as saying.
The Russian ruler also hopes that newly elected Belarusian MPs and local council deputies will cooperate with their Russian counterparts.
The elections took place amid mass-scale reprisals and a political landscape purge. Not a single opposition candidate was allowed to run.
About two-thirds of the newly elected MPs, 70 out of 110, represent pro-government parties, while the rest are nonpartisan supporters of Łukašenka.
The United States and other democratic countries condemned Belarus’ elections as a sham. Ukrainian MPs from the For Democratic Belarus parliamentary group made a similar statement.

Pro-government parties dominate parliament
- SocietyExiled Belarusian academics set up public opinion research hubThe material is available only to POZIRK+
- PoliticsReprisals: police raids target political prisoners' familiesThe material is available only to POZIRK+
- Politics, SecurityBelarusian contingent taking part in CSTO exercisesThe material is available only to POZIRK+
- Politics
- SecurityMinsk, Moscow share position on threat assessment – ChreninThe material is available only to POZIRK+
- Society
- PoliticsForeign minister attacks “neocolonial brain drain” at non-aligned ministers’ meetingThe material is available only to POZIRK+
- EconomyBelarus to test-run digital rubel in mid-2026The material is available only to POZIRK+
- Economy
- SocietyBelarusian woman disappears in MyanmarThe material is available only to POZIRK+
- Politics
- Politics, SocietyInformation minister defends censorship, calls banned books “subversive”The material is available only to POZIRK+
- Economy
- SocietyInvestigators link death toll in recent car crash to speeding, unbuckled seatbelts, poor lightingThe material is available only to POZIRK+
- Economy
- EconomyReal income’s growth stalls at 10 percent in January-AugustThe material is available only to POZIRK+
- PoliticsKGB brands six regime critics as terroristsThe material is available only to POZIRK+
- PoliticsReprisals: sociologist accused of high treasonThe material is available only to POZIRK+
- PoliticsBelarus envoy presents credentials to Bolivia's presidentThe material is available only to POZIRK+
- PoliticsKyiv: Łukašenka adds Biełaruski Hajun detainees to "exchange pool"The material is available only to POZIRK+