Three leading Belarusian opposition activists were detained on Monday, following a weekend during which tens of thousands of demonstrators marched on President Alexander Lukashenko's residence in Minsk, demanding the long-time leader step down.

As protests against Belarus's contested presidential elections entered their third week, the appearance of the embattled president holding a gun outside the Independence Palace on Sunday, alongside Monday's detentions, signals a new determination from the 65-year-old leader to take control of the crisis.

Over the weekend, Lukashenko promised one supporter that the biggest challenge to his 26-year rule would be resolved in "the coming days."

However, amid EU sanctions, solidarity rallies in neighboring countries, and an impromptu visit from a senior U.S. State Department official to the region, the situation in Belarus has taken on an international dimension.

Opposition detention

Sergei Dylevsky and Olga Kovalkova, members of the opposition's Coordination Council, were taken into custody on Monday morning, alongside Alexander Lavrinovich, who was detained later in the day.

All three have helped to organize the mass demonstrations in response to the contested election on 9 August, which have been galvanized by the government's post-election crackdown and the arrest of nearly 7,000 activists. 

Last week, Lukashenko warned representatives of the council – set up to negotiate a transition of power – could face criminal charges for creating what he described as a parallel government. 

The Belarusian prosecutor has since opened a criminal inquiry into the members on charges of undermining national security.

Activist Sergei Dylevsky played a central part in orchestrating the strike at the Minsk Tractor Plant, just one part of a growing number of labor actions that have targeted the nation's top industrial plants, seen as symbols of Lukashenko's rule and the workplaces of his traditional voter base. 

His colleague Alexander Lavrinovich was the leader of striking workers at another major industrial plant.

On Saturday, the president said he would close factories that have been the site of worker protests: "If a factory is not working, then let's put a lock on its gate from Monday, let's stop it," he told Russian news agency RIA.

The other detained opposition representative, Olga Kovalkova is a close associate of the main opposition challenger in the vote, Sviatlana Tikhanovskaya, who is currently in Lithuania after leaving Belarus following the presidential elections.

Protesters march on the Palace

The detention of the three activists follows a weekend of protests in Minsk that at at one point converged on Lukashenko's residence. According to news agency Reuters the crowd was 200,000 strong, but the government says a tenth of that number attended.

Earlier in the day, the Belarusian defence ministry had issued a warning to demonstrators, particularly in relation to gathering near World War II memorials, that "any violation of peace and order in such places – you will have the army to deal with now, not the police."

However, the authorities allowed protesters to march through the capital's streets, with no reports of clashes with the security forces. 

State footage showed Lukashenko flying over the rally in a helicopter before landing at his main residence, Independence Palace, emerging in body armour and with a rifle in his hand. He was later seen congratulating riot police who were protecting the Palace. 

It is the first time that anti-government protesters have neared the building's doors since the eruption of protests against Lukashenko's sixth election win earlier in the month. The crowd dispersed peacefully later in the evening. 

This came in spite of Lukashenko vowing on Friday to resolve his country's political crisis "in the coming days" and growing support from neighboring countries for the anti-government movement.

Territorial integrity

Across the border, Lithuanians stood in a 35,000-strong human chain, stretching 34 kilometers from central Vilnius to the Belarusian frontier on Sunday, rallying in solidarity with the neighboring protesters and Tikhanovskaya, who has taken refuge in the country.

Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda joined the action near its end at the Belarus border, telling demonstrators: "I am proud my nation heeded the call and came here to encourage Belarus."

He added: "We are not indifferent, and we will never be indifferent." U.S. Ambassador to Lithuania Robert S. Gilchrist also took part in the demonstration. 

It follows Lukashenko's order on Saturday to his defence minister to take "stringent measures" to defend the country's territorial integrity, adding to concerns prompted by a series of Belarusian military drills near the Lithuanian and Polish frontiers earlier in the month.

During Saturday's inspection of military units in Grodno, near Belarus's border with Poland, he accused Western countries of giving support to protesters, adding that NATO troops in Poland and Lithuania were "seriously stirring" near their borders. 

He went on to order his troops into full combat readiness.

NATO, Poland and the Lithuanian president have rejected the claim. Nauseda said: "The regime is trying to divert attention from Belarus's internal problems at any cost with totally baseless statements about imaginary external threats."

Outside influence

Potentially signaling a greater involvement from the U.S. in the Belarusian crisis, Stephen Biegun – considered 'Number Two' at the U.S.'s main foreign affairs body – announced on Sunday that he would travel to Lithuania, Ukraine and Russia, with plans to meet representatives from each country.  

The U.S. official has been vocal since his arrival, calling on the Belarusian government on Monday to release all political prisoners, while condemning the government's alleged human rights violations against protesters. 

He responded to journalists' questions about a potential Russian intervention in the crisis that there was no indication of any plans from Moscow for military intervention in Belarus: "Of course that would be most unwelcome, but we don't have any indication beyond some of the public remarks that we've heard," he said in Vilnius, after meeting opposition leader Tikhanovskaya.

Moscow, considered Belarus's closest ally, has said it would be prepared to provide military assistance in accordance with a collective military pact, if necessary. 

On Monday, Russian President Vladimir Putin spoke to Lukashenko over the phone to discuss the situation, but the details of the conversation have yet to be released. Despite their close ties, analysts believe the Kremlin is yet to offer any meaningful support to the Belarusian government.

But this did not stop Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov from hitting out at Tikhanovskaya on Sunday. 

Russia's top diplomat said the political newcomer's statements were directed at a Western audience, describing her agenda as being focused on creating disunity by generating anti-Russia sentiment through aiming to join the European Union and NATO.

Tikhanovskaya, who speaks Russian at home, has said that she would continue to have close links with Russia if she were elected leader. 

Video: Pedro Duarte