MINSK, February 24 (RIA Novosti) – Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko on Sunday ruled out the possibility of a popular uprising in his country similar to the recent events in Ukraine.
"There will be no Maidan in Belarus,” Lukashenko said, using the unofficial term to denote the main protest camp in Kiev’s Independence Square.
He said that although “certain tensions and fears for the future and stability of our state can be perceived in the society,” but it was the “sacred mission” of the government and law-enforcers to “preserve peace and stability in our land.”
“We should learn on other people’s mistakes and prevent even smallest indications of instability in our country. The neighboring Ukraine, which has become an arena for a clash between powerful internal and external forces, should be a lesson for us,” the president said.
The authoritarian leader, who has been in office since 1994, violently dispersed a massive rally protesting against alleged vote fraud in the 2010 presidential elections.
