MINSK, 13 November (BelTA) – The level of politicians in the European Union dropped considerably in the last few years. Belarus President Aleksandr Lukashenko made the relevant statement in an interview with Igor Korotchenko, a military expert and Editor-in-Chief of the Russian magazine Natsionalnaya Oborona [national defense] on 9 November, BelTA has learned.
Igor Korotchenko called Aleksandr Lukashenko a patriarch of European politics. “You know what these people, these politicians are worth… What is going on in the West, a degradation of political elites? When are they going to calm down? Will they accept normal mutual relations? Is it possible in theory?” he asked.
About refined “politicians”
Aleksandr Lukashenko compared current European Union figures with their predecessors in the previous decades. And the former do not look good in this comparison. “There are no politicians over there after [France President Jacques] Chirac, [Federal Chancellor of Germany Gerhard] Schroder, and other ones. There is definitely no one there on par with [a French army officer and statesman, the founder and president of the Fifth Republic of France Charles] de Gaulle anymore. It means just what you've said: complete degradation,” the Belarusian head of state said.
Aleksandr Lukashenko remarked that Western politicians often grandstand: “I often watch them. Once they see a TV camera, they blossom: they start waving hands, smiling, adjusting their jackets, walking around… And they are not politicians. They are people, who are trying to become, you know, refined politicians.”
Moreover, there are some quarrels and mutual mudslinging in Europe. The president also noted the strong dependence of some European countries on the USA's policy: “Interesting things will happen in Poland. Just you wait. If it was someone else, [the European Union] would have already cut them down to size like Bulgaria or someone else. It won't happen to Poland because Americans have Poland's back. Everything Poland is doing contrary to the policy of the European Union was ordered by Uncle Sam.”
“Poles and Ukrainians criticize me. They say Lukashenko does what Putin tells him to. I think Poles, [Poland President Andrzej] Duda and [Poland Prime Minister Mateusz] Morawiecki are the wrong people to raise this subject,” the Belarusian leader noted.
About the strong leaders Xi Jinping and Vladimir Putin and the “solid woman” Angela Merkel
Nevertheless, Aleksandr Lukashenko is convinced that there are still genuine leaders in the modern world: “Look at [China President] Xi Jinping. He is a giant, a strong leader. Look at [President of Russia Vladimir] Putin. They criticize Putin but our civilization would have perished without him, Russia would have been split apart. Time came and things worked out and Russia was saved partially thanks to President Putin. It happened in front of my very eyes.”
According to Aleksandr Lukashenko, Federal Chancellor of Germany Angela Merkel looks excellent in comparison with other politicians in the European Union. “How could ‘mutter' Merkel gain fame in Germany? In comparison with them she indeed looked solid. Although I am not trying to exaggerate her role, she looked good in comparison with the rest. And there was no one else. There are no politicians worrying about their nations over there. They worry about their own pockets, bribes, and the rest… There is no freedom of speech. Empty chatter,” the Belarus president is convinced.
How Americans “cast down” Macron
“Listen, what is the European Union? How many people do they have? 500 million I think or more than that? They have no security of their own and no army of their own! Look. They stepped on the tail of Australians and those refused to buy French submarines worth 50 or 60 billion. Which means Americans took this [France President Emmanuel] Macron and France by the scruff of the neck and dipped them into the Atlantic Ocean. There was a bit of an outburst which then calmed down, things were accepted the way they are. This is their policy,” Aleksandr Lukashenko mentioned a recent example.
He stressed that the European Union with a population of half a billion people should have strong positions. “It should be a massive power. As they swim closer on ships and submarines, Americans should tremble and ask for permission to get closer in advance. But Americans wiretap everything in the European Union. And hear silence [in return]… Someone may make a statement for mass media and that's it. That's Europe for you. The same applies to America. Crazy people!” Aleksandr Lukashenko said.
