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
- PoliticsViasna releases update on reprisals in BelarusThe material is available only to POZIRK+
- PoliticsJailed lawyer asks Lithuanian president to swap him for Belarus’ prisonersThe material is available only to POZIRK+
- PoliticsPro-government MP calls on emigrants to assault opposition politiciansThe material is available only to POZIRK+
- Politics, SecurityMigration crisis tested Poland’s defense capability – DudaThe material is available only to POZIRK+
- PoliticsUkraine, Russia hold new prisoner swap in BelarusThe material is available only to POZIRK+
- PoliticsOSCE group: Belarus must end crackdown on opponentsThe material is available only to POZIRK+
- PoliticsUN expert urges Minsk to speed up release of jailed dissidentsThe material is available only to POZIRK+
- PoliticsBelarus', Russia's PMs discuss integration in phone callThe material is available only to POZIRK+
- Politics
- Economy, PoliticsEU court upholds sanctions on Belarusian chemical plantsThe material is available only to POZIRK+
- PoliticsIrregular Belarus-EU crossings surge 62 percent in January-June from H2 2024The material is available only to POZIRK+
- PoliticsCichanoŭskaja's aide discusses political prisoners at UN human rights officeThe material is available only to POZIRK+
- Politics
- Politics, SocietyReprisals: 26 persecuted in Biełaruski Hajun caseThe material is available only to POZIRK+
- PoliticsAt least 1,944 NGOs dissolved since August 2020 – LawtrendThe material is available only to POZIRK+
- Politics
- EconomyBotswana’s foreign minister invites investment from Belarus, playing up benefits of peaceful power transferThe material is available only to POZIRK+
- SocietyProsecutor appeals convicted Belarusian spy’s sentenceThe material is available only to POZIRK+
- PoliticsOpposition social security chief decries forced deportation of pardoned prisonersThe material is available only to POZIRK+
- SocietyEducation officials make conflicting statements on free tuition quota for RussiansThe material is available only to POZIRK+