President of Belarus inaugurated despite election protests

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — President Alexander Lukashenko of Belarus has assumed his sixth term of office in an inauguration ceremony that officials did not announce in advance.

State news agency Beltra reported that Wednesday’s swearing-in ceremony took place in the capital of Minsk with several hundred government officials, lawmakers and media representatives present.

It comes after weeks of mass protests against the official results of the Aug. 9 election that resulted in Lukashenko’s reelection.

Lukashenko said it was “the day of our victory, convincing and fateful.”

Lithuania’s foreign minister called the inauguration “a farce.”

A prominent opposition activist compared the ceremony to a “gathering of thieves” and refused to recognize Lukashenko as the president of Belarus.