KYIV, Aug 17 - Foreign Minister Dmytro Kuleba said on Monday he had recalled the ambassador to Belarus for consultations to assess the prospects of further bilateral relations between the two neighbors “in the new reality,” Reuters reported.

“The development of events in Belarus, whose society has expressed a vote of no confidence in the official results of the presidential elections in Belarus, is fundamentally changing the situation in Belarusian-Ukrainian relations,” Kuleba said in a statement.

The United States believes mass protests in Belarus make clear the government of longtime president Alexander Lukashenko “can no longer ignore” calls for democracy there, a senior Trump administration official said on Monday.

The official, speaking on condition of anonymity, also said Russia should stay out of the situation brewing in the Eastern European country, saying Moscow “must also respect Belarus’ sovereignty and the right of its people to freely and fairly elect their own leaders.”

Belarusian security forces have clashed with protesters in Minsk and other cities after Lukashenko claimed a landslide re-election victory in a vote that his opponents say was rigged.

Lukashenko said on Monday he would be ready to hold new elections and hand over power after a constitutional referendum in an attempt to pacify the protests and strikes that pose the biggest challenge yet to his 26-year rule.

U.S. President Donald Trump called it a “terrible situation” unfolding in Belarus.

The senior Trump administration official said the United States was closely following developments in Belarus.

“The massive number of Belarusians peacefully protesting make clear that the government can no longer ignore their calls for democracy,” the official said.

“President Lukashenko’s remarks today reflect this realization, though power sharing still does not address the lack of free and fair elections.”

“Russia must also respect Belarus’ sovereignty and the right of its people to freely and fairly elect their own leaders,” the official said. (rt/ez)