{"id":11392,"date":"2022-04-09T11:54:28","date_gmt":"2022-04-09T08:54:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/api.pozirk.online\/longreads\/lukasenka-casts-himself-as-independent-actor-indirectly-admits-complicity-in-russias-invasion-of-ukraine\/"},"modified":"2026-02-24T20:29:13","modified_gmt":"2026-02-24T20:29:13","slug":"lukasenka-casts-himself-as-independent-actor-indirectly-admits-complicity-in-russias-invasion-of-ukraine","status":"publish","type":"longreads","link":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/longreads\/11392\/","title":{"rendered":"Luka\u0161enka casts himself as independent actor, indirectly admits complicity in Russia\u2019s invasion of Ukraine"},"content":{"rendered":"

\n By Valieryj Karbalievi\u010d<\/span>\n<\/p>\n

\n By pushing for Belarus\u2019 participation in Russian-Ukrainian talks, Aliaksandr Luka\u0161enka seeks to re-establish himself as an independent player in international relations. He indirectly admitted his regime\u2019s complicity in the Russian invasion of Ukraine.<\/b>\n<\/p>\n

\n\t The Belarusian ruler presided over a Security Council meeting on April 7 focusing on economic security. Western sanctions are a major challenge for his regime trying to avert a major crisis.\n<\/p>\n

Luka\u0161enka on defensive<\/span> <\/h2>\n

\n\t Luka\u0161enka understands that he will be perceived as the one responsible should Belarus plunge into a crisis, so he tried, in his usual fashion, to lay the blame at the door of the West.\n<\/p>\n

\n\t He defended Russian troops\u2019 deployment to Belarus for an assault on Ukraine as \u201cabsolutely legitimate\u201d use of the mechanism of military support in the framework of the Union State of Belarus and Russia.\n<\/p>\n

\n\t Echoing excuses offered by Russian President Vladimir Putin, he noted that the West would have imposed sanctions on Belarus anyway regardless of \u201cRussian-Ukrainian relations.\u201d\n<\/p>\n

\n\t He expressed regret that Minsk has been sidelined from Russian-Ukrainian peace talks. \u201cThe professional efforts by our military officials and diplomats went unnoticed in the West.\u201d\n<\/p>\n

\n\t Those remarks were not new.\n<\/p>\n

Lack of trust between Minsk, Moscow<\/span> <\/h2>\n

\n\t What was new was his announcement that Minsk seeks a role to play in Russian-Ukrainian talks on the region\u2019s post-war security architecture. He reiterated that statement at his meeting with the Pakistani ambassador in Minsk on April 8. He had stepped in but was not allowed to take the role of a neutral host. Now he wants to participate in the talks.\n<\/p>\n

\n\t This is clearly an attempt by Luka\u0161enka to re-establish himself as an independent player and regain control of Belarus, which he lost after he had let Russian troops in. He does not want to be perceived as Putin\u2019s vassal and puppet.\n<\/p>\n

\n\t He would like Belarus to regain the status it had in 2021. If that status is codified in an international agreement and Russia withdraws its troops from Belarus, he would consider it a diplomatic success.\n<\/p>\n

\n\t He also hopes that involvement in the talks would earn him recognition in the West and Ukraine, which have treated him as Mr. Luka\u0161enka after his disputed re-election in 2020.\n<\/p>\n

\n\t In general, he likes to be in the international spotlight and to be involved in crucial international developments. The spotlight is now on Ukraine, and he wants a role to play there.\n<\/p>\n

\n\t But he does not trust Moscow. He said he does not want any \u201cseparate\u201d deals struck behind his back. “The three Slavic nations” should finally “sit down at the table and agree as equals,” he added.\n<\/p>\n

\n\t Foreign Minister Uladzimir Makiej said the same day that Minsk had informed Moscow of its intention to take part in peace negotiations between Russia and Ukraine.\n<\/p>\n

\n\t Moscow might benefit from Belarus\u2019 participation in the talks to be able to put pressure on Ukraine from two sides.\n<\/p>\n

\u201cSince you have dragged us into it\u201d<\/span> <\/h2>\n

\n\t However, by seeking to participate in the talks, Minsk de facto and de jure acknowledges its complicity in the attack on Ukraine, with all that it implies.\n<\/p>\n

\n\t Luka\u0161enka blamed the West for dragging Belarus into the conflict. \u201cThere can be no talks without Belarus. Since you have dragged us into it, I mean Western countries in the first place, naturally, Belarus\u2019 position must be heard there.\u201d\n<\/p>\n

\n\t Western countries branded Belarus a co-aggressor after Luka\u0161enka let Russian forces to use his country\u2019s infrastructure and territory for military operations. Minsk seems to accept that label and seeks participation in the talks as a co-aggressor.\n<\/p>\n

\n\t The remark that he does not want any separate deals struck behind his back is very important. Only an ally can hold separate negotiations during a war.\n<\/p>\n

\n\t Earlier, Luka\u0161enka denied Belarus\u2019 participation in hostilities. If it has not been involved, then Minsk should distance itself from any talks to end war.\n<\/p>\n

\n\t If Belarus has been involved, it should be ready not only to receive security guarantees, but it also should be ready to pay compensation to Ukraine as a party that lost the war, and to be held accountable for its complicity in war crimes.\n<\/p>\n

\n\t On April 8, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said that Moscow supported the idea that Belarus should act as a security guarantor in a possible future peace deal with Ukraine.\n<\/p>\n

\n\t He claimed that Ukraine would like to see “all the countries adjacent to Ukraine and a number of other states, including the permanent members of the UN Security Council” among its security guarantors.\n<\/p>\n

\n\t Moscow\u2019s intentions are quite clear. The more countries act as guarantors, the weaker are security guarantees. In an emergency, multiple guarantors would have to align their responses. If Russia, Belarus, the United States and France are all guarantors, their guarantees will not work. This is exactly what Moscow wants.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

By Valieryj Karbalievi\u010d By pushing for Belarus\u2019 participation in Russian-Ukrainian talks, Aliaksandr Luka\u0161enka seeks to re-establish himself as an independent player in international relations. He indirectly admitted his regime\u2019s complicity in the Russian invasion of Ukraine. The Belarusian ruler presided over a Security Council meeting on April 7 focusing on economic security. Western sanctions are […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":75,"featured_media":0,"template":"","rubric":[22],"class_list":["post-11392","longreads","type-longreads","status-publish","hentry","rubric-theviewer"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nLuka\u0161enka casts himself as independent actor, indirectly admits complicity in Russia\u2019s invasion of Ukraine | Pozirk<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"By Valieryj Karbalievi\u010d By pushing for Belarus\u2019 participation in Russian-Ukrainian talks, Aliaksandr Luka\u0161enka seeks to re-establish himself as an\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/longreads\/11392\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Luka\u0161enka casts himself as independent actor, indirectly admits 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