Experts evaluate main theses of Lukashenko's speech
The world continues discussions on yesterday's Alexander Lukashenko press conference, during which the head of Belarus demonstrated extreme levels of hostility to the United States Ukraine … But Russia and China were lucky – in relation to these countries, Belarusian politicians mostly supplemented. MK found out why Lukashenko decided to abandon the principle for more vectors.
Photo: president.gov.by.
& nbsp; The head of Belarus accused Ukraine of malice. According to Lukashenko, the president of the neighboring country, Volodymyr Zelensky, forgot how he asked him for fuel and lubricants two years ago and got what he wanted. Lukashenko does not want to impose sanctions on Kiev yet, but warns that if she wants to, she and Russia will be able to bring Ukraine to its knees in a day. In response, Ukrainian members of the Verkhovna Rada from the inter-association “ For a Democratic Belarus“ offered to cut diplomatic relations between Kiev and Minsk.
& nbsp; A Belarusian politician called Great Britain a “ supporter of the United States & # 39; & # 39 ;. London deserved such a definition after the European Union imposed new sanctions on the Lukashenko regime. According to him, the Belarusians did not know what Great Britain was for a thousand years, and now they do not even want to know about it.
& nbsp; He accused the US authorities of falsifying the last presidential election and killing supporter Donald Trump, who tried to question the results of the vote during the riots. However, the American reaction did not take long. On the evening of the same day, Washington extended sanctions against the Lukashenko regime to hit the defense, energy, construction, transportation sectors of the Belarusian economy, potassium carbonate exports, and tobacco products.
& nbsp; Lithuania, Lukashenko has threatened to “ get it in full & # 39; & # 39 ;. Politics was outraged by the fact that Lithuania sends illegal migrants to Belarus who arrive on its territory from a neighboring republic. He warned that if it continued, the Belarusian border guards could kick their faces. Lithuanian Foreign Minister Gabrielyus Landsbergis has already stated that Vilnius can extend sanctions to Belarusian alcohol and completely stop the transit of Belarusian potassium through its territory. True, Lukashenko was not afraid of such prospects & mdash; is convinced that Minsk will lose nothing if it does not export its goods through the port of Klaipeda, but through Russia.
Former presidential candidate in Belarus, leader of the “ Tell the Truth! “ Andrey Dmitriev explained MK Lukashenko's position is that he does not see the possibility of fundamental changes in relations between the collective West and Minsk in the near future. “ Among other things, this will not happen because Lukashenko himself will not change his behavior, which has led to the current crisis. His attempt to shift dialogue from democratic change to a migration crisis has failed. Instead of negotiating, the European Union began to solve the problem on its own. Now the easiest way to declare an external enemy is the West, which imposes sanctions, does not recognize presidential elections, etc., “ Dmitriev said.
& nbsp; The ex-presidential candidate also reminded that Lukashenko had traditionally bad relations with the West, and only in 2014 did they begin to settle due to events in Ukraine. As for the current situation, Dmitriev believes that Russia's financial infusions into Belarus are the only guarantee of keeping power in Lukashenko's hands.
& nbsp; “ During his press conference, Lukashenko said many times: & # 39; & # 39; When Putin and I talked about the West. This means that it seeks to legitimize its actions not through an internal political situation, but through geopolitical confrontation. At the same time, Belarusians are still aware of everything that is happening with this country, including sanctions, closed borders, etc. Due to internal, not external, & # 39; & # 39; concluded Dmitriev.
& nbsp; Konstantin Zatulin, Deputy Head of the CIS State Duma Committee, Head of the CIS Institute , believes that Lukashenko is a sensitive person who has gained a great deal of experience in his position over the years.
“ It is now clear that the Belarussian regime is being supported solely at the expense of Russia, which is prepared to cooperate with it, and believes that its rejection could lead to disaster for the state of the Union. There are fears that instead of Lukashenko, forces that are oriented in the opposite direction to Russia may come to power, and no one can guarantee that problems in Russian-Belarusian relations can be avoided, `'Zatulin said.
The politician claims that Moscow objectively assesses what is happening in Belarus, but believes that now all that remains is to limit the coup attempts and influence Lukashenko to push him out of the political crisis.
& nbsp; “ However, the Belarusian authorities continue to play for aggravation and create grounds for new sanctions. Under these conditions, Lukashenko is trying to say what he thinks would be nice to hear & nbsp; Russia. However, the real question remains what practical steps it will take to comply with the 1999 agreement on the creation of a state of the Union. For the time being, Lukashenko believes that he can continue to swear at the West and avoid significant steps towards real integration with Russia, & # 39; & # 39; said Zatulin.