Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko said during a session in Minsk on Saturday that he plans to discuss the situation in the country with his Russian colleague Vladimir Putin, as the events in the republic can affect the Union State, TASS reported.
“What I’m saying is practically there is a scenario of aggression against Belarus. We need to contact Putin, the president of Russia, so that I can hold talks with him. Because there is a threat not only to Belarus,” he said, quoted by BelTA news agency. “The protection of Belarus today is nothing less than the protection of our entire area, the area of the Union State. This is an example to others. If the Belarusians don’t withstand it, this wave will arrive over there,” he added.
Belarus held a presidential election on August 9. According to the final results provided by the Belarusian Central Election Commission on August 14, incumbent President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko got 80.1% of the vote. Svetlana Tikhanovskaya, who was considered his main opponent, came in second with 10.12%.
After exit poll results were announced in the evening of August 9, protests erupted in downtown Minsk and other regions of the country, leading to clashes between protesters and the law enforcement. The protests continued over the following days. As a result, several thousand people were detained, dozens of police officers and protesters were injured.
