Exiled Opposition Leader Urges West to Prioritize Belarus Amid Escalating Regional Tensions
Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, the exiled leader of the Belarusian democratic opposition, has issued a stark warning to Western leaders, urging them to “pay more attention to what’s happening in Belarus” as geopolitical instability continues to grip Eastern Europe. Speaking in a recent address, Tsikhanouskaya emphasized that the fate of her nation is inextricably
linked to the security of the entire region and warned against the dangers of allowing the country to drift further into Russia’s orbit while the world’s focus remains fixed on the war in Ukraine.
Tsikhanouskaya’s appeal comes at a critical moment for the Belarusian opposition, which continues to operate from exile in Lithuania and Poland. She argued that ignoring the internal situation in Belarus—where the regime of Alexander Lukashenko continues to crack down on dissent—plays directly into the hands of the Kremlin. According to the opposition leader, a strategy that isolates the Belarusian people or treats the country solely as a Russian satellite state risks cementing Moscow’s control over the territory, potentially turning it into a permanent staging ground for aggression against Ukraine and NATO’s eastern flank.
“We must separate the regime from the Belarusian people,” Tsikhanouskaya stated, highlighting that the majority of citizens do not support Belarus’s involvement in Russia’s military operations. She noted that while the Lukashenko regime acts as an accomplice to Moscow, ordinary Belarusians continue to resist through acts of sabotage, information gathering, and maintaining a distinct national identity despite severe repression.
The opposition leader also addressed the growing concerns regarding nuclear rhetoric in the region. While acknowledging the West’s anxiety over the deployment of Russian tactical nuclear weapons to Belarus, she cautioned against falling for “nuclear blackmail.” She described these moves as part of a hybrid war designed to intimidate Western capitals and divert resources and attention away from supporting Ukraine. By focusing only on the nuclear threat, she argued, the West risks overlooking the creeping annexation of Belarus’s political and military independence.
Tsikhanouskaya called for a more robust and unified strategy from the United States and the European Union. This strategy, she suggested, should include closing loopholes in existing sanctions that allow the regime to sustain itself, while simultaneously increasing support for Belarusian civil society and independent media. She stressed that the democratization of Belarus should not be viewed as a secondary issue to be resolved after the war in Ukraine, but rather as a necessary component of any lasting peace in Europe. “There can be no safe Ukraine without a free Belarus,” she asserted.
Recent diplomatic engagements suggest that Kyiv and other European capitals may be reassessing their approach. Tsikhanouskaya recently held high-level meetings with Ukrainian leadership, signaling a potential shift in how the region views the strategic importance of the Belarusian democratic movement.
As the conflict in Eastern Europe drags on, Tsikhanouskaya remains firm that the West’s attention span is its most valuable asset. Abandoning the Belarusian cause now, she warned, would not only betray the thousands of political prisoners currently held in the country but would also leave a dangerous security vacuum on Europe’s border for decades to come.
* themoscowtimes.com
* nv.ua
* rbc.ua
* globalnews.ca
* tol.org
