MINSK, 21 October (BelTA) – The forthcoming reforms in Belarus should be implemented within the legal framework. Any transformation of the government structure should follow the evolutionary path. It is what matters. Doctor of Political Science, Corresponding Member of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Director of the Institute of Europe of the Russian Academy of Sciences Aleksei Gromyko made the statement during a meeting in the International Media Club, BelTA has learned.
Aleksei Gromyko said: “It seems to me that in Belarus just like in Russia a very fierce strife is going on between certain parts of the society. In the grand scheme of things there is nothing to worry about but steps should be taken to make the country stress-resistant. The political system and the society should be able to accumulate these shocks and find some ways to resolve the problem without getting stuck in a dead end. It would be ideal if the conflict gets resolved with assistance of broad layers of the population. Consequent reforms, changes, amendments to the Constitution, maybe even the remodeling of the political system – the transition from a presidential republic to a presidential and parliamentary one – should proceed within boundaries of the legal framework and should not result in clashes inside the country or god forbid a civil conflict. It is not about individual persons. Preserving tranquility in the country, preventing damage to our strategic relations is what matters. Any transformation of the government structure should follow the path of evolution instead of revolution.”
While talking to reporters, Aleksei Gromyko made a few comments about the situation in Belarus after the presidential election. He noted that Moscow and Minsk tried to understand the nature of the crisis in the first couple of weeks after the election.
“But then Belarus' [Western] neighbors started taking very active steps, spinning the matter of this crisis out of control and painting the situation only in black and white, a skill which Western mass media have perfected, generally speaking,” the expert noted. “It seems to me that Moscow's actions were neither rushed nor poorly thought-out. Contrariwise, I remember how lengthy the pause was. Only after it became clear that a number of countries are intent on exploiting the situation for their own ends, then Moscow and Minsk put many misunderstandings and grievances behind them and started acting in lockstep.”
