Three Facts About Lukashenko's Secret Life

The dictator's press office is covering it up.

These days the ruler, apparently, combines "pleasant with useful". "Salidarnasts" told what is known about Lukashenko's unofficial vacations.

The ruler's press service hides his vacations

In 2024, the ruler said while speaking to students: "I have never once in all my presidential years truly been on vacation. Only at home I can rest, although it's hard to say that it's a vacation here."

In fact, of course, this is not true (like much else that has come out of his mouth for decades). Until about ten years ago, the ruler's press service officially reported that the politician was on vacation. But then it stopped doing so, resorting to formulations about "continuation of a working visit", "non-public meetings", "informal communication", etc.

Why Lukashenko's entourage no longer admits that the ruler is on vacation in this or that country? One can only guess.

Probably, the point is that the ruler is not ready to behave like heads of democratic states: to take vacations at his own expense. If it is announced that Lukashenko went on vacation - but on a state-owned Boeing and his trip is paid for from the budget - not even all supporters of the ruler will be able to accept it.

Lukashenko's favorite resorts are Sochi and the UAE

In democratic countries, for example, in Europe, the ruler has hardly ever had a vacation in his life. Agreeing to the conditions of openness and democracy is not in his spirit. Lukashenko's style is to close himself and his entourage from prying eyes.

Almost the entire period of his presidency he liked to vacation in Sochi, Russia. And for a long time - twice a year: in winter, when you could go skiing, and in September - when the heat in the resort declined, but the warmth remained. In one trip, the ruler could spend two weeks in Sochi.

Since the mid-2010s, Lukashenko liked resorts in the Emirates. When it is cold in Belarus, he spends about a week there - in November, December, January or February.

In 2019, the ruler frankly admitted that he goes on vacation to the UAE to "dip his feet in the bay."

This year Lukashenko changed his resort to neighboring Oman for an unknown reason. This winter, however, he may also take an unofficial vacation in the UAE.

Lukashenko is building a new residence in Sochi

In Sochi, the ruler has previously stayed in apartments at the Belarus recreation complex in Krasnaya Polyana. The last time he had a long vacation in Sochi in 2022 - in May and September.

In 2023, Lukashenko said:

-Yacht, heat, sun - it's not my thing. If you go to the mountains in winter, there is no better place than Sochi. We have a state base and a hotel there. I don't need anything else.

But, as it turned out, in fact, Lukashenko now needs much more for recreation - the "state base" no longer suited him.

Last year, investigators learned that Lukashenko had ordered to sell a plot of land in Krasnaya Polyana from the property of the Republic of Belarus to the Russian private firm Complex-Invest by a secret order. Now Lukashenko's "first publicly known foreign residence" is being built there.

The Belarusian Investigative Center recently showed footage from the construction site.

The facility is scheduled to be completed by the end of this year.

It is likely that soon enough we will see Lukashenko in his favorite Sochi, and the press service of the ruler will tell us about his "working trip" and "non-public meetings".

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