Belarusian dictator spends IMF loan (Photo)

Invented by Lukashenka “Independence Day”, which is in real fact the day of liberation of Minsk of the Nazi invaders, was celebrated on a large scale.

About 3000 soldiers took part in a military parade on July 3. 21 military detachments marched along Masherau Avenue near a monument Minsk City-Hero. Soldiers of the Honorary Guard of the Armed Forces, the 120th guards mechanized brigade, students of the Military Academy of Belarus, the military department of Belarusian State Technical University, cadets of the Suvorov Military Academy in Minsk, soldiers of special purposes squads of the Belarusian army, internal troops, and the Ministry of Emergencies demonstrated the military bearing. Modern military equipment and those of the Great Patriotic War were displayed. Aerobatic teams “Kryly Belarusi” and “Belaya Rus” demonstrated their airmanship.

As the Charter’97 press center has already reported, Alyaksandr Lukashenka attended the parade with his five-year old son Nikolai, dressed in parade uniform and a forage cap. The participants of the parade had to salute to two Lukashenkas.

The parade rehearsals were organized in Minsk a week before July 3. Tanks were driving in Minsk for several hours, damaging asphalt coating and hindering car drivers (as the central roads were blocked in Minsk). Combat aircrafts flew several hours above Minsk.

Specialists calculated that one flight of a USSR produced combat aircraft costs from 20 to 40 thousand dollars.

The cost covers fuel, air control, navigation, amortization of a plane, airdromes, salaries of pilots and technical personnel. It should be noticed that the Ministry of Defence made up a list of the zones, where flights are forbidden. Minsk city is one of such zones. Flights above the capital are possible only in exceptional cases on a special permit. The rehearsals and the parade seem to be such an exception.

To all appearances, the parade and its preparation took a huge sum from the Belarusian budget. According to military observer Alyaksandr Alesin, this at least 50 million dollars were spent for the event. This sum doesn’t cover Minks streets, damaged by tank tracks, and organizing sporting, theatrical parts of the parade, as well as agricultural machinery parade. Where did Lukashenka mange to get such a sum amid crisis when the gold and currency reserves are melting and negative balance growth beats records? The Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund took a decision to increase stand-by

programme for Belarus to 3.52 billion dollars (by 1 billion dollars) and approved transferring the second tranche of 679.2 million dollars to Minsk.

The IMF supposed that the new loan should “support the government's economic program and help Belarus to contain the effects of a greater than expected impact from the global financial crisis”. However, we can see that the Belarusian dictatorship spends money on parades and demonstration of “military power”. So, the next IMF tranche may be spend on “Dazhynki” harvest festival celebration...

Photo by Bymedia.net