Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko said on Saturday he wanted to speak to Russian President Vladimir Putin, warning street protests rocking the country were not just a threat to Belarus. Mass unrest has followed Mr Lukashenko’s re-election victory last Sunday, with tens of thousands of people taking to the streets accusing him of rigging the vote. “The aggression against Belarus is developing,” he said in a meeting with government officials. “There is a need to contact Putin so that I can talk to him now, because it is not a threat to just Belarus anymore,” he continued, according to state news agency Belta. “Defending Belarus today is no less than defending our entire space, the union state, and an example to others … Those who roam the streets, most of them do not understand this.” Earlier, the leaders of Latvia, Estonia and Lithuania called for “free and fair” elections in Belarus, which Mr Lukashenko — known as “Europe’s last dictator” — has ruled for 26 years.
Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko said on Saturday he wanted to speak to Russian President Vladimir Putin, warning street protests rocking the country were not just a threat to Belarus. Mass unrest has followed Mr Lukashenko’s re-election victory last Sunday, with tens of thousands of people taking to the streets accusing him of rigging the vote. “The aggression against Belarus is developing,” he said in a meeting with government officials. “There is a need to contact Putin so that I can talk to him now, because it is not a threat to just Belarus anymore,” he continued, according to state news agency Belta. “Defending Belarus today is no less than defending our entire space, the union state, and an example to others … Those who roam the streets, most of them do not understand this.” Earlier, the leaders of Latvia, Estonia and Lithuania called for “free and fair” elections in Belarus, which Mr Lukashenko — known as “Europe’s last dictator” — has ruled for 26 years.