Former presidential candidate of Belarus Svetlana Tikhanovskaya believes Belarus will continue to maintain close economic ties with Russia, even if the opposition comes to power, Le Journal du Dimanche writes.

“It’s fully clear that Russia is our neighbor. Belarus supports commercial ties with Russia and even in larger amounts than with the European Union. Why? There are apparently reasons I don’t know since I’m neither an economist nor a politician. However, I can assure that nobody would be against this, including me,” she said, adding that she looks forward to support from the West and that hopes the West helps the opposition convince Lukashenko that his time is up and that it’s time for him to leave.