MINSK, August 27. /TASS/. President of Belarus Alexander Lukashenko said he did not condemn the actions of the French authorities regarding the detention of Telegram founder Pavel Durov, Belarusian news agency BelTA reported on Tuesday.
"We saw those better things in France yesterday. And I don’t condemn them," BelTA cited Lukashenko as saying during his speech at the Nationwide Conference on Teaching in Minsk. "They are doing the right thing. Durov or not. If you are guilty, you must be held accountable."
"Only why do you have to complain about us if you protect yourselves with the same methods?" the president of Belarus continued.
According to Lukashenko, Russian President Vladimir Putin earlier told him about details of his previous conversation with French President Emmanuel Macron, when they discussed human rights situation both in Minsk and Paris, where protests staged by yellow vests were in full swing in France.
"If you remember, they cracked down on everyone regardless of whether you are a woman or not. And Putin told Emmanuel to look at what was happening in France. Putin said that people, including women and the rest, were getting beaten up indiscriminately. That Macron should not criticize Lukashenko in such a situation. And he responded: ‘Well, we are a democratic nation. We can do it. But his is a dictatorship’," Lukashenko added.
The Belarusian president added addressing teachers addressing the teachers in attendance of the conference: "I’d like you to feel [the essence of Western democracy] and instill it into our school students."
Pavel Durov was detained at Le Bourget airport in Paris on August 24; on the next day, his detention was extended by 96 hours. The Paris prosecutor’s office suspects him of being complicit in illegal drug trafficking, crimes against children and fraud - in short, he is being viewed as an accomplice to the people who use Telegram to commit these and other offenses.
The Russian Embassy in France told TASS that it intends to ensure that Durov’s rights are protected and that he receives consular access due him, but "France has been avoiding cooperation on this issue so far."
Reuters reported earlier in the day that the Paris prosecutor’s office decided to extend Durov’s detention for another 48 hours. Later, this information was confirmed by TASS, but it was unclear whether Durov’s detention was prolonged again or whether the report was referring to the previous 48-hour extension to the initial 48-hour period.