During her visit to Warsaw, Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya gave a speech at Civitas University, a prestigious private Polish institution focused primarily on social sciences. In her address to the audience, she emphasized that today’s war is not only a tragedy for Ukraine but also a tool for the survival of authoritarian regimes in Belarus and Russia.
Ms. Tsikhanouskaya spoke about the scale of Lukashenka’s regime’s involvement in the war, Lukashenka’s strategic dependence on Putin, and why the West cannot afford to ignore this threat:
“The war has become a lifeline for Lukashenka. When it began, all attention shifted from Belarus to Ukraine. What’s more, the regime continues to benefit from it. More than 280 state-owned enterprises in Belarus supply the Russian army. The dictators help each other circumvent sanctions and support each other on the international stage.
Lukashenka’s very survival depends on Putin’s backing, while his domestic support inside Belarus is minimal. He is selling off Belarus’s sovereignty in exchange for financial and political support. And he is destroying everything that connects Belarusians to Europe, isolating our people from the rest of the world.
Both dictators want this war to continue as long as possible. It fuels their regimes and justifies their repressions. And unfortunately, without substantial pressure, I don’t see another way to force them to stop the war and terror.
We must closely monitor the ‘Zapad-2025’ military exercises planned for this fall. This threat must not be underestimated, although I doubt Putin has the resources to open a new front.
In any case, Europe must rearm and be ready. This is our Europe too, and we want it to be peaceful and secure”.
