What will be the first foreign visit of new President?

ERB asked potential presidential candidates where they would pay their first visit to: Moscow, Brussels or Washington. Tell the Truth! campaign leader Uladzimir Nyaklyaue did not give an unexpected answer. He said brefly: "To the East!" Later, he explained.

Uladzimir Nyaklyaeu: “With all this talk about our moves towards the West and that's very important to me, our foreign policy and foreign economic priority is to sort out all those contradictions in our current relations with Russia”


When asked by ERB if going East was justified by the desire to visit the friends who finance Nyaklyaeu's campaign, the politician frankly admitted that was one of the reasons as well. He added later that the Belarusian state television would have no more financial arguments against Tell the Truth! campaign.

Uladzimir Nyaklyaeu: “After Lukashenka cried out about some $200 thousand that he had allegedly found and stressed that it was Nyaklyaeu's money, there was a feeling that the trial of people's traitors would be imminent. Simply, we have stopped traveling and making contacts with people with whom we are financially bound. They just took it up on their shoulders themselves”.

Mikalai Statkevich is also confident that the first visit of every newly elected president should be made to Moscow. “This is our economic and political reality, when the Belarusian economy is tied with the Russian economy. I believe this factor should be taken into account by every sober politician. I think, Brussels will not be offended, if it will be the second capital to visit", said Statkevich.



The deputy chairman of the Party of the Belarusian Popular Front has no priorities. He would pay his first visit to where he receives the first invitation from.

Ryhor Kastusyou: “Whoever invites me first will be visited first. But, I would like to be in Washington, Brussels and Moscow. I would like to make friends with all of them”.



Jaraslau Ranachuk said he would not head to any of the three mentioned capitals immediately. His first visit wold be to Canada, followed by a visit to Ukraine.

Jaraslau Ramanchuk: “We will head to Canada to build a bridge to Great 20. Afterwards, we will travel to Ukraine to talk about the same bridge”.



Ramanchuk will also visit Moscow, but he does not want to make it sound as a political priority.

Businessman Viktar Tsyareshchanka said he would board a plane and visit both Moscow and Brussels within one visit, but Moscow would be first.

Viktar Tsyareshchanka: “The visit will be to Moscow first and then to Brussels. Common proposals between Belarus, Russia and the European Union are major issues that need to be addressed”.

Vital Rymasheuski, the candidate from the Belarusian Christian Democracy, is not interested in Moscow or Brussels in the first place, but in Vilnius and Kiev. He will head there on his first visit.

Vital Rymasheuski: “It will be of neighboring countries in the North or in the South -- Ukraine or Lithuania. They are our neighbors; we have a common past and historic future. I believe that a solid and stable future lies in good relation with close neighbors”.


Ales Mikhalevich was not impressed by the proposed choice of destinations for his first visit as the president. "I would like Prague to be my first destination. This is the country which has been doing a lot for Belarus", he said.



In the view of Mikhalevich, the first visit by a newly elected president should be made to the country where global politics are shaped.

Photo by: Zmicier Lukashuk