Presidential election 2015 in Belarus

MINSK, 3 October (BelTA) – One cannot combine socialism with capitalism, Nikolai Ulakhovich, candidate for the post of the President of Belarus, said during the televised debates on the Belarus One TV channel on 3 October, BelTA has learned.

“I am for a market approach. I am largely for capitalism,” Nikolai Ulakhovich said. He stressed that the current authorities do not deserve sharp criticism. “Over the past 20 years a lot has been done in the country. In order to move further we need to revise a number of governmental programs, make them better and more beneficial for our people,” the candidate said.

Nikolai Ulakhovich also spoke in favor of improving the people’s material wellbeing, decent salaries and pensions. “However, I am not here to tell you tales. The crisis we are in will last for two years at least. We need to survive it,” said Nikolai Ulakhovich.

In his words, one should not “beg questions” about integration with the EU. Nikolai Ulakhovich stressed that Belarus’ main market is Russia. Moreover, the candidate is confident that Belarus will be able to survive the economic crisis together with Russia.

The presidential candidate is not against the development of trade and economic cooperation with third countries, however he believes this way to be more costly.