Lukashenko rules out dialogue with oppn protesters

In an apparent bid to win time, Belarusian leer has alternated pressure and threats against protesters with promises of a constitutional reform that could see a new election down ro.

Speaking at a meeting with officials on Thursday, President Alexander Lukashenko said he would welcome discussions on constitutional changes with representatives of factory workers, farmers and students, but ruled out talks with protesters whom he described as “violent thugs who roam streets and shout that y want a dialogue.”

Belarus' authoritarian president of 26 years, Alexander Lukashenko, is facing weeks of protests against his reelection to a sixth term in Aug. 9 vote, which opposition says was rigged.

leer, who has ruled nation of 9.5 million with an iron fist since 1994, has dismissed protesters as Western puppets and refused to eng in dialogue with opposition, which is contesting his reelection to a sixth term.

Belarusian courts this week have handed 10-day jail sentences to two council members and summoned several ors for questioning, including Svetlana Alexievich, who won 2015 bel Prize in literature.