New Belarusian Interior Minister Names Security In Minsk As Priority Amid Protests

New Belarusian Interior Minister Names Security in Minsk as Priority Amid Protests

New Belarusian Interior Minister Ivan Kubrakov said on Thursday that his main goals in the near future would be to ensure security in Minsk amid ongoing anti-government protests and to hire a new team of professionals

MINSK (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 29th October, 2020) New Belarusian Interior Minister Ivan Kubrakov said on Thursday that his main goals in the near future would be to ensure security in Minsk amid ongoing anti-government protests and to hire a new team of professionals.

Earlier in the day, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko announced the appointment of Kubrakov, who previously headed the Main Internal Affairs Department of the Minsk city administration. Meanwhile, the former interior minister, Yury Karayev, became Lukashenko's aide in the Grodno region.

According to Kubrakov, the president tasked him with ensuring the safety of Belarusians in light of the ongoing political crisis.

"The main attention was, of course, paid to ensuring security in Minsk," Kubrakov said, as quoted by the state-run Belta news agency.

In addition, the new minister said that he would be "creating a team" as many Interior Ministry employees were shuffled or promoted.

Protests in Belarus, triggered by Lukashenko's victory in a presidential election that the opposition considers to have been rigged, have been ongoing since mid-August. The opposition and its supporters believe that Svetlana Tikhanovskaya won. On October 25, the deadline for an ultimatum issued by the Belarusian opposition requiring Lukashenko's resignation under the threat of a country-wide strike expired.