German Chancellor Angela Merkel extended the trappings of a state visit to the opposition leader from Belarus, Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, on Tuesday. Tsikhanouskaya, who has formed her own Coordination Council for the Transfer of Power, met with Merkel for 45 minutes, soliciting support for German-, French- and Russian-brokered talks, for a new election. This comes in the wake of another mass demonstration on Oct. 4 of tens of thousands, more NATO weapons and troops having been sent into Poland and Lithuania, and the recent withdrawal of ambassadors between Poland and Lithuania on one side and Belarus on the other.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said today: “The question is whether the legitimate leadership of Belarus needs any intermediaries. I do not know whether the leadership of Belarus would look for any mediators. And we hope that the situation in Belarus will reach a stabilization point without the participation of any mediators.”
