Alyaksandr Lukashenka said on Tuesday that he did not expect any drastic changes in the United States' policy toward Belarus after its November 6 presidential election.
"Little will change in the United States' policy toward Belarus, no matter whether Obama or Romney is elected," he told reporters in Minsk on November 6. "I have little expectation of anything changing. But we are ready for changes if Americans are ready for such steps."
He downplayed the US presidential candidates' campaign rhetoric, saying that "what they say before is not always done by them after the election."
Commenting on US incumbent President Barack Obama's decision to vote early in the election, Mr. Lukashenka noted that the United States often criticized the early voting process in Belarus. "But before reproaching [Belarus], they should take a look at their own country," he said.
Mr. Lukashenka said that he had never cast his ballot early because "it would be wrong considering my position to vote early in secret."
