Belarus President gives interview to Ukrainian TV show

Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko has granted an interview to the Ukrainian TV show Shuster Live.

The statements made by the Belarus president for mass media on 23 March have met a strong interest in Ukraine. The opinion and stance of the Belarusian head of state with regard to the situation in the neighboring country has made him a key figure in the media sphere.

Among other things the interview touched upon the responsibility of a head of state for the fate of the country and the people:

"A president has to be with his or her nation however hard it may be. Even if one is afraid of being shot the next day, it is the destiny. One is supposed to make such sacrifices. There is no other way. One day he sits in his residence, reveling in his power, the next day when things go south, he flees? That’s no way to behave for a nation’s leader. Therefore, it is impossible to argue against the statements made in the Ukrainian parliament saying that president Yanukovych has removed himself from his office.I don’t want everyone to think that Lukashenko is a turncoat since he was a friend of Yanukovych’s and now talks like that. I criticize him as a friend. Understand me any way you want. Presidents should not act like that. If you have no army, get a gun and go alone. You may be killed… So? We all will be dead sooner or later. But neither your friends nor your relatives nor your sons will be ashamed of you. It is my stance."