Citing fears of punishment from Alyaksandr Lukashenka’s regime in Belarus, Belarusian sprinter Krystsina Tsimanouskaya made national headlines for refusing to board a flight home after being pulled prematurely from the Olympics on August 1. This action came just months after Lukashenka’s government called in fake bomb threats to ground a flight and arrest and jail the dissident journalist Roman Protasevich. And on August 3, a well-known Belarusian activist, Vitaly Shishov, was found dead in a park in Kyiv. Many suspect foul play.
On this episode of Fast Thinking, experts Melinda Haring and Doug Klain from the Atlantic Council’s Eurasia Center explain what’s behind the regime’s latest illegal actions abroad and discuss what’s ahead for Lukashenka in Belarus as we approach the anniversary of the dictator’s illegitimate reelection.
