{"id":11402,"date":"2022-04-22T15:11:38","date_gmt":"2022-04-22T12:11:38","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/api.pozirk.online\/longreads\/minsk-steps-up-attacks-on-opponents-in-response-to-europes-refusal-to-engage\/"},"modified":"2026-02-24T20:29:13","modified_gmt":"2026-02-24T20:29:13","slug":"minsk-steps-up-attacks-on-opponents-in-response-to-europes-refusal-to-engage","status":"publish","type":"longreads","link":"https:\/\/pozirk.online\/en\/longreads\/11402\/","title":{"rendered":"Minsk steps up attacks on opponents in response to Europe\u2019s refusal to engage"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>\n <span>By Valieryj Karbalievi\u010d<\/span>\n<\/p>\n<p>\n\t * Reprinting prohibited\n<\/p>\n<h2> <span>Minsk fails to sell its claim of neutrality to the West<\/span> <\/h2>\n<p>\n\t Earlier this month, Minsk sent a letter to European politicians urging the West to engage with Belarus, claiming that it had nothing to do with Russia\u2019s attacks on Ukraine.\n<\/p>\n<p>\n\t \u201cWe categorically deny any insinuations that Belarus has something to do with fighting in Ukraine,\u201d said the letter signed by Foreign Minister Uladzimir Makiej. \u201cBelarus will not participate in the war.\u201d\n<\/p>\n<p>\n\t Aliaksandr Luka\u0161enka attempted to use Belarus\u2019 disengagement from the war as a bargaining chip. He hoped that the West will recognize him as an independent political actor and ease sanctions against his regime.\n<\/p>\n<p>\n\t In 2014 Minsk managed to sell its neutrality in a conflict between the Kremlin and the West and Ukraine. In 2022 the West sees Belarus as Russia\u2019s only military ally and a co-aggressor in its assault on Ukraine.\n<\/p>\n<p>\n\t Before 2020, the Luka\u0161enka regime enjoyed considerable public support, which gave the Belarusian ruler some room for maneuver and a degree of independence from Russia. He did not rely on Russian aid for holding onto power as much as he does now.\n<\/p>\n<p>\n\t Post-election protests showed that most Belarusians want him out of office. A lack of public support has made him heavily dependent on Moscow for political survival.\n<\/p>\n<p>\n\t Moreover, public disapproval prevents the regime from liberalizing politics and releasing political prisoners, a precondition for any negotiations with the West.\n<\/p>\n<p>\n\t Instead of responding to Makiej\u2019s letter, Brussels shared it with the media.\n<\/p>\n<h2> <span>Luka\u0161enka tells security chiefs to step up crackdown<\/span> <\/h2>\n<p>\n\t Minsk was angered by the EU\u2019s refusal to compromise. Luka\u0161enka immediately ratcheted up his rhetorical attacks on the West. In one angry tirade, he described Western diplomats as fascists. Aliaksandr Va\u013afovi\u010d, state secretary of the Security Council, in a televised interview made threats of destruction, deaths and explosions toward Latvia, Lithuania and Poland.\n<\/p>\n<p>\n\t Minsk\u2019s outrage has boiled over into a new wave of attacks on opponents. At a conference with law enforcement officials on April 19, Luka\u0161enka warned, \u201cWe will blow the head off anyone who wants to disturb the peace and tranquility in our country today.&#8221;\n<\/p>\n<p>\n\t He ordered law enforcement officials to crack down on \u201cextremists.\u201d The word has been used by Belarusian officials to describe any manifestations of dissent.\n<\/p>\n<p>\n\t Luka\u0161enka accused law enforcement chiefs of complicity and reluctance to follow his orders.\n<\/p>\n<p>\n\t &#8220;Have you forgotten about 2020? Or are three-quarters of you sitting here happy about what happened in 2020 and want that it repeats? Keep in mind that it won&#8217;t work,&#8221; he said. &#8220;I have enough strength, means and those guys who will stand by me, and we will blow the head off anyone who wants to disturb the peace and tranquility in our country today.&#8221;\n<\/p>\n<p>\n\t Moreover, in a sign of tightening competition among law enforcers, Prosecutor General Andrej \u0160vied blamed the Ministry of Internal Affairs and Investigative Committee for low extremism crime detection rates.\n<\/p>\n<h2> <span>Attack on independent trade unions<\/span> <\/h2>\n<p>\n\t Following the conference, police raided offices and homes and arrested leaders and activists of independent trade unions.\n<\/p>\n<p>\n\t Minsk does not fear a possible response from international unions and the International Labor Organization, which may call for economic measures.\n<\/p>\n<p>\n\t Luka\u0161enka is trying to show the EU that its refusal to engage is fraught with a new crackdown on the remaining members of civil society.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>By Valieryj Karbalievi\u010d * Reprinting prohibited Minsk fails to sell its claim of neutrality to the West Earlier this month, Minsk sent a letter to European politicians urging the West to engage with Belarus, claiming that it had nothing to do with Russia\u2019s attacks on Ukraine. \u201cWe categorically deny any insinuations that Belarus has something [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":75,"featured_media":0,"template":"","rubric":[22],"class_list":["post-11402","longreads","type-longreads","status-publish","hentry","rubric-theviewer"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v25.5 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>Minsk steps up attacks on opponents in response to Europe\u2019s refusal to engage | Pozirk<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"By Valieryj Karbalievi\u010d * Reprinting prohibited Minsk fails to sell its claim of neutrality 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