BELARUS NEWS AND ANALYSIS

DATE:

5/13/2005 11:32:49 AM

FSB: Lukashenko's fall plotted in Bratislava

RUSSIAN secret service (FSB) chief Nikolai Patrushev said that at a recent conference in the Slovak capital, Bratislava, NGOs from Belarus plotted to overthrow Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko, the daily SME reported.

The Russian news agency Itar-Tass reported that Patrushev had told Russian MPs of the plot.

Slovak Intelligence Service (SIS) spokesman Vladimir Simko said that the SIS had no such information while Slovak diplomats would not comment on the issue at all.

"Some information suggests that more than $5 million (?125,000) has been earmarked for the financing of future elections in Belarus," said Patrushev.

Slovak PM Mikulas Dzurinda announced in March that the Slovak cabinet supported Slovak NGOs with $82,000 (?21,000) worth of grants for Belarus projects.

Pavol Demes, the head of the US foundation German Marshall Fund in Bratislava said that if Patrushev really said this officially, Slovakia should "consider sending a demarche to Moscow".

Source:

http://www.slovakspectator.sk/clanok.asp?cl=19746