Will the process of international observation of the presidential elections in Belarus be improved?

On November 21-22, 2024, a meeting of the Council and the 57th plenary session of the Interparliamentary Assembly (IPA) of the CIS member states took place in St. Petersburg. The parliamentary delegation of the Republic of Belarus, headed by the Chairperson of the Council of the Republic Natalia Kochanova, took part in them.

During the event, the CIS parliamentarians made proposals to improve the process of international observation. The issues of electoral sovereignty were considered, the holding of elections that took place in the CIS countries and the observation of them were discussed. This year has been full of political events - elections were held in the Russian Federation, Uzbekistan, Azerbaijan, Belarus. And representatives of the IPA CIS participated in the election observation everywhere.

Natalia Kochanova admitted that everyone draws something new from each other in conducting election campaigns. "We are similar in the assessment that the CIS IPA representatives give. It is always objective, honest, which is sometimes not seen in colleagues from Western countries. There, they are only focused on saying that everything is bad and not recognizing the elections," she expressed her opinion.

According to the Chair, they say such words without even visiting the country. And, perhaps, the most unpleasant thing is that people who have no idea where Belarus is located and how the Belarusian people live are speaking out.