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Presidential elections will be "very hard time" for Belarus, Lithuanian ambassador predicts

Lithuanian Ambassador Edminas Bagdonas predicted that Belarus' coming presidential elections would be a "very hard time" for the country, BelaPAN reports.

In an interview with Lithuania's Russian-language website http://www.ru.delfi.lt, the diplomat warned that Minsk's relations with Moscow would influence the results of the elections expected to take place in late 2010 or early next year. "What matters most is that the elections should be fair and open and meet the OSCE criteria," he was quoted as saying.

Mr. Bagdonas expressed regret that Belarus was not using opportunities offered by the European Union, including in the framework of the Eastern Partnership program.

He said that the Minsk-based Lithuanian embassy planned to open a NATO information center in Belarus.