MINSK • Belarusian leader Alexander Lukashenko yesterday responded defiantly to the European Union and the United States which refused to recognise his inauguration as president, citing rigged polls.

"They're shouting that they don't recognise us," he said at a meeting with Chinese Ambassador Cui Qiming.

A number of Western countries have refused to acknowledge Mr Lukashenko as president, following his inauguration on Wednesday. He claimed to have won 80 per cent of the vote in Aug 9 polls, despite huge support for his opposition rival Svetlana Tikhanovskaya. The US called the elections "fraudulent".

Mr Lukashenko insisted: "We never asked anyone to recognise or not recognise our elections, or to recognise the legitimacy of the re-elected president or not."

Yesterday, the EU said Mr Lukashenko's inauguration for a sixth term lacked "any democratic legitimacy" and was reviewing relations with Minsk.

Earlier on Wednesday, the US and European countries including Germany said they refused to recognise Mr Lukashenko as the president of the ex-Soviet state as the elections were not free or fair. The non-transparent ballot included days of early voting while Belarus failed to invite international observer group OSCE in time.

The opposition has called for fresh elections to be held according to international standards.

Mr Lukashenko said of the inauguration that "the main thing is that this should correspond to our country's Constitution. And if they see contradictions, let them say so".

AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE