A. Lukashenko: We must go to the elections with good intentions and offer good to the people

Alexander Lukashenko stressed that he would always act in the interests of the Belarusian state and people. "We have a country, we have a people, we have declared that this Belarusian state shall be sovereign and independent. The West supports this. Therefore, we will ensure our sovereignty and independence and act primarily in the interests of the Belarusian people, because we, as a country and the people living in this country, have our own interests, and these interests, no one can reproach us for this, do not contradict the European Union in any way." The head of the Belarusian state also noted that Belarus is ready to establish relations with the EU in any format: "Let's establish relations. If you want - within the framework of the 'Eastern Partnership', if you want - directly European Union - Belarus, if you want - France-Belarus, as you find convenient." Regarding Belarusian-French relations, Alexander Lukashenko confirmed his intention to further develop them. "We would like to develop relations with the French Republic and will develop them. But all this depends not on us, but on you. If you have the desire and aspiration to cooperate with Belarus, we will immediately respond to it," he stressed. Alexander Lukashenko also expressed his opinion on the current stage of relations between Belarus and Russia. He stressed that the relations between Belarus and Russia "are as they were and remain." "There is no sharp deterioration of relations, because neither Russia nor we need it," the head of state noted, adding that Russia has military-political and strategic interests in Belarus. At the same time, he does not believe that the Russian leadership still has plans to include Belarus as part of Russia. "You probably know well that the Russian leadership would like to include Belarus as part of Russia, you have heard it. But I do not think that the Russian leadership still adheres to these goals," the President told a journalist from a French publication. "But Russia makes the same mistakes as the European Union. We must take into account the realities. We must take into account that there is a state and a people, the Belarusian state and the Belarusian people. And for any President, whoever is here, it is sacred to protect these interests," the President emphasized."The entire complexity lies in the fact that we are situated between these two huge "monsters": the European Union and Russia. And each has its own interests on the territory of Belarus," the Belarusian leader stated. "We agree that both you and Russia have your interests in our land. But we always ask and demand from our partners to take into account our interests as well, those of our Belarusian people, and to understand that a people and a state exist here." Regarding the reasons for the failed meeting between the President of Belarus and the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Russia, Sergey Lavrov, during his visit to Minsk, Alexander Lukashenko noted: "We did not plan this meeting." The Head of State also touched upon the topic of the upcoming presidential elections in Belarus. He mentioned that he possesses evidence of Russia financing some opposition candidates for the position of head of the Belarusian state. In response to a journalist's question about whether Russia is assisting parts of the Belarusian opposition, Alexander Lukashenko said: "This is true, and we know it. We have evidence. Vladimir Neklyayev, Andrei Sannikov – these are individuals who are currently financed by Russia." In the opinion of the head of the Belarusian state, the current opposition candidates are not prepared to conduct an election campaign. "If the presidential campaign is an illusion for them, then, by all means, they have the right not to participate in this illusion. But if they are genuine politicians, they must take responsibility and fight for this post. In my opinion, they are not ready to conduct an election campaign," he said. Alexander Lukashenko stated that he had heard the speeches of some candidates for the highest office in the country. In his view, one should approach elections with goodwill and offer goodness to the people. "So much malice, as emanates from them today, will only lead to them frightening people and achieving a situation where people will not vote for them at all," he said. "Therefore, pouring out this malice to the people from the screen is not the Belarusian way," the President added. Speaking about the possibility of cooperation between the authorities and the opposition, Alexander Lukashenko did not rule out such a scenario. However, according to him, the basis for such cooperation must be the improvement of people's lives. "I am the President of the country and I represent the entire nation today. If any citizen, group of people, or party finds it convenient and wishes to cooperate with the current authorities, including the President, they are most welcome. The foundation of this must primarily be the improvement of people's lives," he said."Our so-called opposition is currently acting from the position of "the worse, the better": the worse for the people, the better for them. On such grounds, I do not intend to cooperate not only with the opposition, but also with any other citizens of Belarus or foreign states. My goal is to improve people's lives, not to worsen them," stressed Alexander Lukashenko. At the same time, he noted: "If the opposition members want and are ready to act in line with the policy that is currently being pursued in Belarus, and they are capable of working in some position according to their abilities, you are welcome." "Le Figaro" is the largest French daily general political newspaper. More than ten periodicals belonging to the "Le Figaro" group hold leading positions in the French press industry. The newspaper was founded in January 1826. Currently, the circulation of "Le Figaro" is about 400 thousand copies. -0-

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