Lukashenko unexpectedly fails to deliver speech on Victory Day
Alexander Lukashenko, the self-proclaimed President of Belarus, has failed to deliver a customary speech to commemorate Victory Day during this year’s celebrations in Minsk on 9 May.
Source: Nasha Niva, a Belarusian media outlet
Details: Journalists pointed out that after his sudden return from Moscow on 9 May, Lukashenko only took part in the ceremonial laying of flowers, while Viktor Khrenin, the Minister of Defence of Belarus, delivered a speech. In previous years, Lukashenko would normally himself deliver a speech.
"This ‘delegation’ is extraordinary for Belarus, where Lukashenko has absolute power. It appears that his health problems are more serious than they may seem," Nasha Niva journalists wrote.
They noted that he sounded hoarse during the most recent official event in Minsk.
Background:
- On 9 May, when Russia celebrates Victory Day, self-proclaimed president of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko returned to Minsk immediately after the military parade organised by Russian dictator Vladimir Putin in Moscow, without waiting for the celebrations to end.
- Photos show that Lukashenko's hand was bandaged during the parade. Later it became known that he had to be taken by car to the flower-laying ceremony in Alexandrovsky Garden.
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