The Czech Republic's pro-Russian president on Tuesday voiced support for the Belarusian opposition in its fight with "Europe's last dictator" during a meeting with exiled opposition leader Svetlana Tikhanovskaya. President Milos Zeman "expressed personal support to Svetlana Tikhanovskaya and highly appreciated her courage," Zeman's spokesman Jiri Ovcacek said on Twitter. "He wished the opposition a victory in its struggle with Europe's last dictator," he said. Tikhanovskaya left her country to live in Lithuania following the 2020 presidential election, in which she ran against strongman President Alexander Lukashenko, Belarus's leader since 1994. She stood in for her husband, who announced he would run against Lukashenko but was imprisoned shortly afterwards. Won by Lukashenko and described as rigged by international observers, the vote sparked nationwide unrest and a massive, violent crackdown on protesters. Zeman, a 76-year-old veteran leftwinger and former Communist, is known for fostering close ties with Russian President Vladimir Putin, who supports the Lukashenko regime. Tikhanovskaya is on a four-day visit to Prague, a part of her world tour, meeting politicians and fellow exiled Belarusians to garner support for the Belarusian opposition. frj/dt/yad