The presidential election held on March 18 in Russia have made the opposition-minded people in Belarus deeply disappointed. This resulted in biased and offensive anti-Russian statements in opposition media and in social networks.
An information portal Nasha Niva popular with Belarusian nationalists covers the election under a single headline: “In the supremacist frenzy: Putin re-election secured by anti-Western and anti-Ukrainian hysteria.” According to the author of the article Andrey Danko, “there was no real competition at the election; Alexey Navalny, the only noticeable critic of Putin who managed to survive was not allowed to run for presidency.”
Another anti-Russian news resource, The Belarusian Partisan, published a news report on Serbian President Aleksandar Vucic’s congratulation to Vladimir Putin with the headline: “Bowing to Putin: who was faster than Lukashenko?”. The article was republished by several Belarusian media with the same headline.
Radio Liberty known for its anti-Russian rhetoric and being one of the voices of opposition in Belarus, also spoke on its attitude towards the election by an article on “how Russians were forces to go to the polling stations” that was describing numerous violations during the election campaign and presenting the election as illegitimate.
The Solidarity internet media took comments from Belarusian politicians on the outcomes of the Russian election. The article had the title: “Lukashenko must get ready to the fact that the Kremlin generosity will be coming to null.” The article says that Belarusians must expect anything good after the election in Russia. The leader of The Perspective organization Anatoly Shumchenko noted that everything was predictable in Russia like in Belarus: “This means that your incomes will continue declining. The Kremlin is interested in preserving the current regime in Belarus and will not allow any changes.”
Belarusian economist Yaroslav Romanchuk said that “Lukashenko needs to get ready for the Kremlin’s generosity in loans and oil-and-gas products will be coming to null.” “So, we should be ready to compete for the Russian market... Let it be so, but without aggression, or currency, trade and sanitary wars. One cannot expect that Putin in his next six-year term would suddenly stop saying ‘Byelorussia’ and start saying ‘Belarus’ and make all Russian officials do the same.”
Opposition activist Pavel Severinets notorious for his hate to Russia even says that the outcomes of the election in Russia are a “mandate for a nuclear war.”
State-run media in Belarus have covered the presidential campaign in Russia in a neutral nature. President Alexander Lukashenko was one of the first state leaders to congratulate Vladimir Putin on the victory.
“I am sure that the historical ties of friendship and mutual understanding of our people will serve the basis for further extension of the Belarusian-Russian strategic partnership,” Lukashenko announced.