MOSCOW, May 24. /TASS/: Moscow is always ready to come to Minsk’s aid especially against the backdrop of the external pressure exerted over the country, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said in the interview with the Argumenty i Facty newspaper.
"We can suppose that ‘well-wishers’ of Belarus will not stop at this [pressuring the Belarusian leadership]. We are concerned by more calls by [Belarusian ex-presidential candidate Svetlana] Tikhanovskaya to mobilize protesters in August-September this year. We are hoping that the Belarusian people will show the wisdom it has in its nature and will not toe the line of those who are trying to use this situation in their self-serving interests," he noted.
"Naturally, Russia won’t leave Belarus in trouble. We are always willing to come to the aid of our neighbor and strategic ally. Because brotherly and often family ties, common history, and spiritual values make up the base of our relations," Lavrov stressed.
Belarus held presidential elections on August 9, 2020. According to the Central Election Commission’s official results, incumbent President Alexander Lukashenko won by a landslide. His closest rival in the race, Svetlana Tikhanovskaya, came in second, but refused to accept the result of the election and fled Belarus. After the results were announced, mass protests erupted in downtown Minsk and other Belarusian cities. During the early post-election period, the rallies snowballed into fierce clashes between the protesters and police.
