Following the Belarus Presidential elections which took place on Sunday, 9th August 2020, The European Union has stepped in and is taking action for a ‘peaceful transition’ for the Belarusian people. On Wednesday, EU leaders discussed the situation in Belarus during the European Council video conference where they revealed their continuous support for the people of Belarus and stand up for the violence against the protesters. Furthermore, the EU leaders also discussed the recent Belarus election results, where they do not recognize their elections as they were neither free nor fair and did not meet with International standards.
The President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen addressed her speech by stating that ‘We (the EU) gave them three clear messages’. The first message is that the EU ‘stands by the people of Belarus who want fundamental freedoms and democracy’. In the second message, von der Leyen stated that the EU ‘will sanction all those responsible for violence, repression and falsification of election results’. She concluded that the EU will support democratic and peaceful transition of power in Belarus.
Charles Michel, President of the European Council took to social media to state a similar message that, ‘The European Union stands in solidarity with the people of Belarus. This is about the right of the people to freely elect their leadership’. The European Commission is showing their support by contributing 53 million euros for the people of Belarus. The money will be divided and distributed to victims of state violence, to support free media and COVID-19.
ESO - European Studies Organisation 