Belarus and its leader Lukashenko, who has been the biggest supporter of Russia since the first day it invaded Ukraine and started a war, have turned a deaf ear to all the reactions from the world. However, the circle is narrowing for Lukashenko, a very close friend of Putin, who allowed his territory and army to be used for the invasion operation…
Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, who ran against Lukashenko in the disputed 2020 presidential election and was forced to flee Belarus amid a Kremlin-backed crackdown on the opposition, now lives in exile.
For Lukashenko, a supporter of Putin’s regime, the war in Ukraine has been a life vest, and Belarus has seen two years of protests, international condemnation and sanctions following the election.
THE WAR BENEFITED LUKASHENKO
As Putin sought to portray Lukashenko as a war ally, the Russian leader, worried about the collapse of his regime in this country and Belarus following Ukraine on a more pro-Western trajectory, took a deep breath.
However, when exiled politician Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya raised questions about the Russia-Belarus alliance, which on paper was progressing quite well, all hell broke loose.
Exiled opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya said that Belarusian dictator Alexander Lukashenko’s power is very weakened and that his army has not been called to fight in Ukraine because Russian President Vladimir Putin cannot be sure that Lukashenko’s troops will follow his orders.
HE MAY EVEN CHANGE SIDES!
Not content with that, Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya says that the Belarusian dictator’s troops under his command could even side with Ukraine if Putin orders an invasion in the face of an “epic failure” for his friend in Minsk.
“I am sure Lukashenko would order the Belarusian army to join this invasion,” Tsikhanouskaya told POLITICO in an interview in Brussels. If he was sure that they would fight…”
“Imagine the situation, if he gave this order, the Belarusian army crossed the border and they fled, they changed sides, they hid because they don’t really want to fight the Ukrainians. Imagine Putin’s reputation in front of the Kremlin – it would be an epic failure.”
