Constitutional reform in Belarus proposed by President Alexander Lukashenko will help organise a dialogue between the authorities and the civil society, which is essential to settle the ongoing political crisis, official said.
The Russian Foreign Minister, Sergey Lavrov, said this while addressing students at the Moscow State Institute of International Relations on Tuesday in Moscow.
On Monday, the Belarusian state-run Belta news agency reported, citing Lukashenko, that the draft of the renewed Belarusian constitution would be submitted for public consultations and a referendum.
In particular, the leader’s proposals focused on court reforms and included the transfer of powers from the federal to local governments, among other things.
Lukashenko also rejected the opposition’s demand to go back to the version of the 1994 constitution, saying it would not help to move Belarus forward.
“Belarusian President has proposed constitutional reform.
“According to our overall assessment, this is the format that will allow for a dialogue with civil society and discussion of all those issues that concern one or another sector of the Belarusian society,” Lavrov said.
In light of Lukashenko’s proposals, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said that Russia was ready to share its own experience in implementing constitutional reform.
Russia held the vote to introduce amendments to its 1993 constitution in July.
At the same time, the spokesman noted that Moscow would assist Belarus if a relevant request from Minsk is made.
FAT/
Edited By: Fatima Sule/Emmanuel Yashim (NAN)
