EDITOR’S PICKS

Putin’s willing provocateur: Lukashenka escalates EU border crisis

BelarusAlert May 10, 2022

Belarus has good reason for concern over Putin’s nuclear intimidation

By Steven Pifer

Belarusian dictator Alyaksandr Lukashenka has warned that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine could go nuclear. If Vladmir Putin deploys nuclear weapons there is reason to believe that Belarus itself would soon be in the firing line.
Belarus Conflict
Putin’s willing provocateur: Lukashenka escalates EU border crisis

BelarusAlert May 31, 2022

From White Russia to Belarus: Norway snubs Kremlin with name change

By Peter Dickinson

Norway has announced that it will now use the name “Belarus” instead of “Hviterussland” (literally “White Russia”) in a move reflecting growing awareness that Belarus should not be viewed through a Russian lens.
Belarus Democratic Transitions
Putin’s willing provocateur: Lukashenka escalates EU border crisis

BelarusAlert May 17, 2022

Putin’s only friend: Belarus is Russia’s last remaining post-Soviet ally

By Brian Whitmore

The recent CSTO summit in Moscow highlighted Russia’s lack of support even within the former Soviet region while underlining Belarus dictator Alyaksandr Lukashenka’s status as Vladimir Putin’s last remaining ally.
Belarus Central Asia

LATEST ANALYSIS

BelarusAlert

Jun 2, 2021

Putin’s Belarus strategy: Arsonist and firefighter?

By Brian Whitmore

Vladimir Putin has a proven skill for surreptitiously playing the arsonist and then offering his services as a firefighter. He may now be employing these same tactics in his approach towards the crisis in neighboring Belarus.

Belarus Politics & Diplomacy

BelarusAlert

May 27, 2021

Putin sides with Belarus dictator over air piracy as Ukraine rejects Minsk talks

By Peter Dickinson

Former Ukrainian president Leonid Kravchuk has confirmed that Ukraine will seek to move peace talks with Russia away from Minsk as the international fallout from Belarus dictator Alyaksandr Lukashenka’s recent act of air piracy continued to make waves throughout the region.

Belarus International Norms

BelarusAlert

May 26, 2021

Did Russia assist in Belarus dictator’s act of air piracy?

By Brian Whitmore

Did Belarus dictator Alyaksandr Lukashenka get a stealthy assist from Vladimir Putin’s Russia in hijacking a commercial airliner travelling between two European Union countries?

Belarus International Norms

BelarusAlert

May 25, 2021

Ukraine bans Belarus flights over Lukashenka’s air piracy

By Peter Dickinson

Ukraine will ban air traffic with Belarus starting May 26 as the fallout continues from Sunday’s dramatic forced landing of an EU airliner and passenger abduction in Minsk.

Belarus Politics & Diplomacy

BelarusAlert

May 24, 2021

State-sponsored air piracy: Belarus dictator tests the international community

By Peter Dickinson

European leaders agreed to new sanctions against Belarus on May 24, the day after dictator Lukashenka sparked uproar by forcing an EU passenger jet to land in Minsk and abducting a high-profile dissident passenger.

Belarus European Union

New Atlanticist

May 24, 2021

Belarus air piracy: How the world should respond

By Daniel Fried

Outrage at aggression should lead to action. The West has options for a civil-aviation response as well as new targeted sanctions.

Belarus Economic Sanctions

BelarusAlert

May 19, 2021

Dialog of dictators: How Putin and Lukashenka really talk to each other

By Brian Whitmore

Meetings between Russian President Vladimir Putin and Belarusian President Alyaksandr Lukashenka have become more frequent since the outbreak of anti-regime protests in Belarus last year, but details remain vague.

Belarus Politics & Diplomacy

BelarusAlert

May 12, 2021

Time to sanction the Putin-Lukashenka “axis of autocrats”

By Brian Whitmore

Callings are growing for the international community to impose sanctions against the Putin-Lukashenka axis rather than just on the Belarusian regime.

Belarus Economic Sanctions

BelarusAlert

May 5, 2021

Belarus sanctions: Time to target Russia?

By Brian Whitmore

Can sanctions against Belarus be separated from sanctions against Russia? Or should sanctions against the two countries be treated as part of a coherent whole, effectively sanctioning the Putin-Lukashenka axis?

Belarus Economic Sanctions

BelarusAlert

Apr 28, 2021

Lukashenka’s succession gambit: Kremlin capitulation or power play?

By Brian Whitmore

Alyaksandr Lukashenka either just made a bold and brazen power play vis-a-vis Russia or he began laying the groundwork for Moscow’s ultimate takeover of Belarus. Whatever the truth is, the stakes are enormous.

Belarus Crisis Management
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spotlight

Belarus

Belarus’ August 2020 presidential election saw widespread protests and serious fraud allegations as President Lukashenka claimed victory against popular opposition candidate Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya. Will Belarus begin its transition to democracy, or will Belarusians face further repression as Lukashenka’s rule falters?

Putin’s willing provocateur: Lukashenka escalates EU border crisis

UkraineAlert Aug 13, 2024

Belarus’s political prisoners must not be forgotten

New sanctions unveiled in August have highlighted the plight of Belarus’s approximately 1,400 political prisoners, but much more must be done to increase pressure on the Lukashenka regime, writes Hanna Liubakova.

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Putin’s willing provocateur: Lukashenka escalates EU border crisis

UkraineAlert Jul 25, 2024

The West should articulate the possibility of a European future for Belarus now

By Richard Cashman

Failure to articulate the possibility of a European future for Belarus leaves the Euro-Atlantic community at risk of being caught off guard without a plan when Belarus reaches its fork in the road, writes Richard Cashman.
Belarus Conflict
Putin’s willing provocateur: Lukashenka escalates EU border crisis

UkraineAlert Jul 16, 2024

I was sentenced to ten years in absentia for highlighting Belarus’s descent into dictatorship

By Alesia Rudnik

My recent ten-year sentence in absentia is a sure sign that Belarusian dictator Alyaksandr Lukashenka is increasingly insecure and dependent on the Kremlin, writes Alesia Rudnik.
Belarus Civil Society

The views expressed in BelarusAlert are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Atlantic Council, its staff, or its supporters.

The Eurasia Center’s mission is to enhance transatlantic cooperation in promoting stability, democratic values and prosperity in Eurasia, from Eastern Europe and Turkey in the West to the Caucasus, Russia and Central Asia in the East.

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BelarusAlert

Oct 13, 2021

Putin’s willing provocateur: Lukashenka escalates EU border crisis

By Brian Whitmore

Shots were fired at the Belarusian-Polish border last week as Belarusian dictator Alyaksandr Lukashenka's hybrid war against the European Union threatened to escalate further amid the weaponization of migrants.

Belarus Conflict

BelarusAlert

Oct 13, 2021

How sustainable is the Belarusian economy?

By Anders Åslund

Belarus dictator Alyaksandr Lukashenka faces mounting sanctions pressure but the Soviet-style Belarusian economy will likely prove sustainable unless the West focuses pressure on Lukashenka's Russian enablers.

Belarus Economic Sanctions

BelarusAlert

Oct 6, 2021

West seeks new ways to hold Belarus dictator Lukashenka accountable

By Brian Whitmore

US and EU leaders are exploring new options as they seek to hold Kremlin-backed Belarus dictator Alyaksandr Lukashenka accountable for his increasingly brazen violations of international norms.

Belarus Economic Sanctions

BelarusAlert

Sep 30, 2021

Want to assess Ukraine’s progress? Look at Belarus

By Vitaliy Sych

Perhaps the best way to gauge Ukraine's post-Soviet progress is to compare the country's media freedoms and fledgling democracy with the authoritarian environment in neighboring Belarus and Russia.

Belarus Democratic Transitions

BelarusAlert

Sep 29, 2021

Lukashenka vs. Ukraine

By Brian Whitmore

Belarus dictator Alyaksandr Lukashenka has accused NATO of establishing military bases in Ukraine and has vowed to respond together with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

Belarus Conflict

BelarusAlert

Sep 23, 2021

No regrets: One Woman in White’s story from exile

By Melinda Haring

Anastasia Kostyugova is one of the hundreds of thousands of Belarusians who have fled their country since 2020. “My mother is in prison. I’m in exile. I didn’t expect this. We didn’t understand the value of human rights and democracy,” Kostyugova affirms.

Belarus Resilience & Society

BelarusAlert

Sep 22, 2021

Russia fears the Belarusization of Belarus

By Brian Whitmore

Moscow commentators are alarmed by signs of strengthening national identity in Belarus and warn that "Belarusization" could lead to a decline in Russian influence, much as it has done in nearby Ukraine.

Belarus Resilience & Society

BelarusAlert

Sep 15, 2021

Russian-Belarusian military merger accelerates on NATO’s eastern flank

By Brian Whitmore

The accelerating military merger between Russia and Belarus is dramatically altering the regional security equation and creating an authoritarian army on the European Union's eastern frontier.

Belarus Russia

BelarusAlert

Sep 14, 2021

Belarus dictator poses growing threat to Ukraine

By Lisa Yasko

Belarusian dictator Alyaksandr Lukashenka's growing dependence on the Kremlin is allowing Vladimir Putin to expand his military presence in Belarus and creating a new front in Russia's hybrid war against Ukraine.

Belarus Conflict

BelarusAlert

Sep 8, 2021

Belarus and Europe’s new Iron Curtain

By Brian Whitmore

Kremlin-backed Belarusian dictator Alyaksandr Lukashenka's weaponization of illegal migration has forced neighboring EU members to introduce tougher border restrictions and led to talk of a new Iron Curtain.

Belarus European Union
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