Belarus

Concerns mount over Russia-Belarus military exercises

By Brian Whitmore

With the quadrennial Zapad military exercises just six weeks away, Russian troops and military equipment have begun arriving in Belarus, and many in the West are concerned that Putin may seek to exploit the buildup.

Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya on Belarus’ future and her place in it

By Doug Klain

“I’m not going to participate in new elections,” Tsikhanouskaya said at the Atlantic Council. Instead, she wants to see a new free and fair election and a self-sustaining democratic movement in Belarus.

Money wars in Belarus

By Brian Whitmore

Belarus dictator Alyaksandr Lukashenka is increasing financial pressure of his domestic opponents. Meanwhile, Western sanctions against his regime continue to mount, leaving Belarus more and more dependent on Russia.

Putin and Lukashenka are locked in a dysfunctional axis of autocrats

By Brian Whitmore

Vladimir Putin and Alyaksandr Lukashenka are bound together in an axis of autocrats but the two dictators are also locked in a game of cat and mouse over Kremlin efforts to expand Russian influence in Belarus.

State of the Order: Assessing June 2021

The State of the Order breaks down the month's most important events impacting the democratic world order.

Lukashenka vs. Europe

By Brian Whitmore

The autocratic regime of Belarus dictator Alyaksandr Lukashenka is intensifying its ongoing cold war against Europe via a series of threats to block trade routes along with ongoing moves to flood the EU with illegal migrants.

Belarus dictator weaponizes illegal migrants against EU

By Brian Whitmore

Kremlin-backed Belarus dictator Alyaksandr Lukashenka has recently begun weaponizing migrants in his escalating confrontation with the European Union and neighboring countries Poland, Latvia, and Lithuania.

Global Sanctions Dashboard: 5th edition

By Julia Friedlander, Michael Albanese and Castellum.AI

China’s anti-foreign sanctions bill, mapping Belarusian KGB sanctions, and building an anti-kleptocracy playbook.

Why Putin dare not abandon Belarus dictator Lukashenka

By Jan Pieklo

Europe’s last two dictators know that if one should fall, the other will find himself in a perilous position. They may not necessarily like it, but Putin and Lukashenka are now locked in an authoritarian alliance.