Former Minsk Region Governor Turchin becomes new Belarusian PM

MINSK. March 10 (Interfax) - Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko has appointed Alexander Turchin prime minister of Belarus, the presidential press service said on Monday.

"Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko has appointed Alexander Turchin prime minister of Belarus. Consistent with the Belarusian constitution, the Belarusian president appoints the prime minister with the preliminary consent of the House of Representatives. This procedure has been carried out," the press service said.

Earlier, Turchin served as a presidential aide and government chief of staff. He became first deputy prime minister in 2018 and headed the Minsk regional administration in 2019.

Former Prime Minister Roman Golovchenko will chair the National Bank of Belarus.

Following the Belarusian presidential election on January 26, when Lukashenko, who had been in office since 1994, was elected for the seventh term, the government tendered its resignation to the president-elect in line with the constitution. Lukashenko reshuffled the government on March 3. Most ministers retained their positions.