Belarus leader says new election to be held

Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko said a new presidential election would be held after the country adopts a new constitution, according to the Russian media.

Joe Davies reports.

After days of mass protests, Belarus' President Alexander Lukashenko now says a new presidential election will be held after the country adopts a new constitution.

That's according to Russian media.

It came only hours after he told tractor workers in Minsk that he's ready to share power - but said there wouldn't be another vote until he was killed.

Lukashenko is facing the biggest challenge of his 26 years in power.

The country has been beset by protests and strikes since he won a sixth term in office on August 9 in an election which his opponents say he rigged.

Eyes are now on Russia - Belarus' ally going back to the Soviet era - where President Putin has offered Lukashenko military help.

Lithuania's foreign affairs minister reacted by saying Russian military help in Belarus would constitute "an invasion".

That intervention came as Belarus began carrying out military exercises near the border with Lithuania.

But a senior parliamentary official in Lithuania said the exercise didn't pose a threat and Lithuania would not be reacting.

Lithuania is also where Belarus opposition politician Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya fled last week to be with her children.

On Monday (August 17), she released a new video demanding a new election - and said she was ready to lead her country.

"I'm prepared to take responsibility and act as the nation's leader during this period so the country settles down and gets back to normality, so that we can release all political prisoners and prepare a legal framework and conditions to hold another round of presidential elections in the shortest time possible." The EU has also waded in - launching a process of imposing sanctions on Belarussian officials it deems responsible for election fraud and a crackdown on protests that followed the disputed election result.