BELARUS NEWS AND ANALYSIS

DATE:

07.20.2005, 10:30 AM

Putin to discuss human rights situation with Belarus president

MOSCOW (AFX) - Russian President Vladimir Putin said he will discuss the human rights situation in Belarus at a meeting with its president Alexander Lukashenko.

'I will have a chance to talk ... about all these topics,' Putin said ahead of talks later today with Lukashenko, who is making a two-day visit to Moscow.

Putin is a close ally of Lukashenko, whose rule has been described by US President George W. Bush as 'the last dictatorship in Europe.'

The Russian president was speaking at a Kremlin meeting with non-governmental organisations, where political analyst Sergei Karaganov denounced a 'rapidly worsening' human rights situation in Belarus.

Source:

http://www.forbes.com/finance/feeds/afx/2005/07/20/afx2148137.html