Press Release, 2.10.2020

Photo: Lev Shlosberg, deputy of the Pskov Regional Assembly from the Yabloko faction / PLN

Lev Shlosberg, deputy of the Pskov Regional Assembly from the Yabloko faction and member of Yabloko’s Federal Political Committee, regards the visit of the Pskov Region delegation headed by the Governor to Belarus on 28 September as a manifestation of support to the Lukashenko regime.

According to Shlosberg, the interaction with an unlawfully elected president will not bring benefit to the Pskov region, but, on the contrary, will complicate the development of good-neighbourly relations with the legitimate authorities of the Republic of Belarus in the future.

The leader of the Pskov branch of Yabloko also said that visits of delegations from Russian regions to Belarus, including that from the Pskov region, is a gesture of support for the legitimacy of Alexander Lukashenko, there will be no practical benefit from such trips.

“If the Russian authorities consider Russia a democratic country, where the rule of law and respect for human rights and freedoms are in place, they should deal with the legitimate authorities of the Republic of Belarus and should not have any dealings with illegitimate authorities. Accordingly, the whole difference lies in the assessment of what happened in Belarus and the assessment of Lukashenko’s power. Those who believe that Lukashenko’s power is legitimate and he won the election honestly, will communicate with Lukashenko and believe that they are doing the right thing. Those who believe that Lukashenko’s power is illegal, the elections have been stolen, people’s votes have been destroyed, they will not communicate with Lukashenko denying indirect support to him. In my opinion, now any actions of the Russian authorities – both federal and regional – aimed at supporting the Lukashenko regime will inevitably lead to additional difficulties for the next authorities in Russia and the Pskov region, when it will be necessary to establish relations with the civilised legal authorities of the Republic of Belarus,” Shlosberg noted.

It should be noted that in August 2020, deputies of the regional legislative assemblies of the Russian Federation, including Lev Shlosberg, declared that they did not recognise the official results of the presidential elections in the Republic of Belarus and that they were in solidarity with the civil society in Belarus about the illegitimacy of the continuation of Alexander Lukashenko’s power.