Belarus President Lukashenko Hints That He Wants His Son To Succede Him

Lukashenko, seen here with his sons Nikolai (left) und Viktor (right), has always denied wanting to create a political dynasty  

DW: Belarus: Lukashenko seeks to empower son Viktor on succession 

The Belarus strongman want the national security council to take over in case he dies. His eldest son Viktor is seen as the informal leader of the body. 

Alexander Lukashenko, the leader of Belarus once dubbed Europe's last dictator, said on Saturday that he will change the law to make it easier to hand more power to a state body which includes his son.

"Tell me, if there is no president tomorrow, would you guarantee everything is going to be fine? No," he told reporters during a visit to areas affected by the 1986 Chernobyl nuclear disaster.

"I will sign a decree about how the power in Belarus will be set up. If the president is shot, the next day the security council will get the power," Lukashenko said, according to the state-run Belta news agency. 

Officially, the 66-year-old strongman himself is the head of the national security council, but Viktor also has a seat and is regarded as the council’s informal leader. 

Under the current law, presidential powers would be transferred to the country's prime minister. The post is currently held by less known Lukashenko loyalist Roman Golovchenko.  

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Update: Belarus leader to amend emergency power transfer to empower son (Al Jazeera)  

WNU Editor: When it comes to Alexander Lukashenko, nothing surprises me. Aside from never trusting anything he says, his priority has always been himself.