Lukashenka to give press conference January 29

The Belarusian dictator plans to give an annual big press conference for the Belarusian and foreign media on January 29.

The information has not been confirmed officially, BelaPAN reports.

Aliaksandr Lukashenka usually holds annual meetings with representatives of the Belarusian and foreign media at the beginning or at the end of the year. In 2011, a big press conference was organised on December 23, involving about 400 journalists from more than 300 media outlets. The next press conference with the participation of more than 350 representatives from 285 media outlets was held on January 15, 2013.

Last year's press conference was held on January 21, but its format was changed – heads of Belarus's biggest state-owned and private media outlets were invited to a meeting with Lukashenka at the Palace of Independence. Unlike usual press conference, it wasn't covered online. A TV version of the meeting was aired in the evening. Lukashenka said about the new format: “To be honest, I have to hold meetings with journalists in this format, but I don't like it because it resembles a lecture. A meeting in a company of interested and informed people allows discussing issues more carefully and trying to take a look at the near future, if possible.”

The format and place of the planned press conference are unknown yet.