Belarus will hold presidential elections in 2025. Necessary preparations are underway, and the presence of international observers at the elections is also being discussed.
There are plans to invite missions from the CIS, SCO and representatives of election commissions from other countries. Will observers from the OSCE/ODIHR be invited?
Belarusian Foreign Minister Maxim Ryzhenkov answered this question in New York, BELTA reports.
The head of the Belarusian Ministry of Foreign Affairs spoke about plans to “use broad instruments of international observation through all specialized organizations.”
At the same time, the minister noted that organizations should be “constructively and objectively disposed to studying the issues that observers encounter.”
At the moment, it is known that Belarus plans to invite observers from the CIS and SCO countries, as well as representatives of election commissions from a number of other countries and other organizations.
Regarding the activities of the OSCE Office for Democratic Institutions and Human Rights, Maxim Ryzhenkov noted that the structure unites more than 50 states.
Accordingly, compliance with the adopted standards must be ensured throughout its entire territory, but OSCE/ODIHR monitoring is carried out only in post-Soviet countries.
They used to be in the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Yugoslavia – they don’t even do it there anymore. That is, they focused their attention only on us. And you know, when observers arrive, they are already set up accordingly, they have already been “tested” on how and what to look at. And when the organization itself is given some narratives that need to be seen or how to reflect Belarus, why do we need such observation? – the diplomat suggested thinking.
Summing up, Maxim Ryzhenkov noted that there is still time to make a decision, but there will be “no practical benefit from this.”
