The EU does not recognize Lukashenko’s legitimacy

1 Libya

The TASS reported while citing a source in the Libyan National Army, headed by Field Marshal Khalifa Haftar, that according to a local investigation — the head of the ISIS in North Africa, Abu Abdullah al-Iraqi, was killed by the LNA forces during a special operation on 15th of September. Earlier on 15th of September the LNA received information about the whereabouts of a group of radicals in the city of Seba, in south of Libya. It was decided to conduct a special operation. 3 LNA soldiers died during the fight that lasted for more than 6 hours. In the result — 9 terrorists were killed, some were arrested.

2 The EU — Belarus

The EU High Representative for the Foreign Affairs and the Security Policy, Joseph Borrell, stated that the EU considers the inauguration and the new presidential term of Alexander Lukashenko to be «lacking a sufficient democratic legitimacy.» The statement noted that the EU is reassessing the relations with Belarus. Joseph Borrell expressed his opinion that “the inauguration is contrary to the will of a significant part of the Belarusian people, which they express via numerous peaceful protests that take place after the elections. This will only lead to an escalation of the political crisis. The EU is certain that a comprehensive national dialogue, and a positive response to the people’s demand for the new democratic elections, are the only way out of the political crisis in Belarus» — the statement concluded.

3 Belarus

The Belarusian Foreign Ministry stated on their website that Minsk is ready to develop constructive cooperation with all the foreign partners. “Belarus never wanted, and still doesn’t want any confrontations. We favor the dialogue. Moreover, we have repeatedly stated that we are interested in the development of the mutually beneficial cooperations with all the international partners. The attempts of certain Western countries to question the legitimacy of our head of the state do not reflect the opinion of the majority of the international community» — the statement specified. The Ministry added that «Belarus has never interfered, and does not plan to interfere in the internal affairs of other states. The country expects a similar approach from the foreign partners.»

4 Poland

The Polish Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki stated after a meeting with the head of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, that the plan to help Belarus was presented to the head of the European Commission, and the plan was received «very well» at this stage. The Visegrad group — Hungary, Poland, Slovakia and the Czech Republic — intends to present their plan of aid for Belarus at the EU summit. Morawiecki underlined that «the plan consists of about 10 specific points that give hope to the free Belarusian society that they won’t be left alone.» «There are proposals to include a stabilization package, structural investments from institutions such as the International Monetary Fund, the European Bank for the Reconstruction and Development, and the European Investment Bank» — Morawiecki explained. “We want to make a positive offer to Belarus” — he concluded.

5 The Gaza Strip

The ‘Al Mayadeen’ TV reported that on Thursday the Palestinian movement ‘Fatah’ and the Islamist organization ‘Hamas’ reached an agreement to hold general elections in the West Bank and in the Gaza Strip over the next 6 months. On 15th of September the ‘Fatah’ leader Mahmoud Abbas and the head of the ‘Hamas’ political bureau, Ismail Haniya, announced «an end to the split between ‘Fatah’ and ‘Hamas’, and the rebuilding of the Palestinian home». The politicians were pleased with the outcome of the conference of the leaders of the Palestinian resistance movement, which took place in Beirut on 3rd and 4th of September. They underlined the importance of the creation of a unified national leadership, and the enhancement of the role of the Palestine Liberation Organization.