On March 25, Alexander Lukashenko marked the beginning of his seventh term as Belarusian president, after declaring himself the victor of the widely disputed January elections, which were criticized for lacking fairness and freedom. In his inauguration speech at the Independence Palace in Minsk, Lukashenko stated that Belarus follows its own standards for elections, which he claimed could set an international example. According to the Belarusian Election Commission, Lukashenko “won” with 86.82%