MOSCOW, February 26. /TASS/. Russian President Vladimir Putin has congratulated his Belarusian counterpart Alexander Lukashenko on the successful completion of parliamentary and local elections.
"Dear Alexander Grigoryevich, I warmly congratulate you on the successful holding of the unified election day and the confident victory of the patriotic forces of Belarus," a telegram posted on the Kremlin website said.
"The high turnout and the results of the people's will clearly confirm the broad support for the course of harmonious socio-economic development of Belarus under your leadership, ensuring domestic political stability and promoting mutually beneficial integration processes within the Union State," the Russian leader added.
Putin expects that the newly elected representatives to the House of Representatives of the National Assembly of the Republic (the lower house of the parliament of Belarus) and local councils at various levels will fruitfully cooperate with their Russian counterparts within the framework of interparliamentary dialogue and multifaceted interregional ties.
"I would like to take this opportunity to wish you good health, prosperity and success in the fulfillment of your governmental duties," the Russian president said.
On February 25, during the first one-day election in the history of Belarus, 110 deputies of the House of Representatives of the National Assembly and 12,514 members of local councils were elected to five-year terms. There were 263 candidates for seats in the parliament, while 18,802 candidates competed for mandates in local councils. The voter turnout was 73.09%.