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The fight for democracy against “Europe’s last dictator”
On GZERO Reports, Alex Kliment talks to Belarusian opposition leader Sviatlana Tikhanovskaya about the ongoing fight against authoritarian rule in her country. More than four years after leading mass protests against President Alexander Lukashenko’s rigged re-election, Tikhanovskaya remains in exile, but she insists that the struggle for a free Belarus is far from over. “Despite all the brutality of the regime, despite all the difficulties, Belarusian people are not giving up,” she says.
Tikhanovskaya sees Belarus’ fate as deeply tied to Ukraine’s, arguing that the “victory of Ukraine in this war will weaken Putin’s regime and hence weaken Lukashenko’s regime.” She also warns that Lukashenko is steadily selling Belarusian sovereignty to Russia, making the country an extension of Putin’s imperial ambitions. As the world adjusts to the return of Donald Trump to the White House, she calls on the US to continue standing up for democracy, reminding Americans that their country “was always a beacon of freedom and hope for nations fighting dictatorship.”
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Is there actually a bromance between Vladimir Putin and Alexander Lukashenko?
Do Russian president Vladimir Putin and Belarusian strongman Alexander Lukashenko actually have a good relationship, as photos of them together on Putin's yacht would suggest? Exiled opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya commented, "You know, the strangest thing, maybe the most obvious thing, is that the whole world understands that these two people are not friends. They are making this picture to try to persuade the Russians and the world that they are together." The reality, in her opinion, is that Moscow may be looking for suitable candidates to replace Lukashenko in a new election, because the crisis in Belarus is very inconvenient for the Kremlin. Tsikhanouskaya would prefer that Russia not interfere with Belarusian politics, she said in a conversation with Ian Bremmer on GZERO World.
Watch the episode: The fight for democracy in Europe's last dictatorship