“Lukashenka must be held accountable for complicity in Russian aggression.” Ukraine's Foreign Minister spoke about a new policy towards Belarus

Andriy Sybiha. Photo: AP Photo / Efrem Lukatsky

— You just returned from Lithuania, where the long-awaited meeting between the president and Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya took place. Do I understand correctly that this is about a new systemic approach to relations with the Belarusian democratic opposition?

— Yes, you are right. The Belarusian track requires a separate systemic policy. I draw your attention to the speech of the President of Ukraine in Vilnius: almost a third of the speech was dedicated to the Belarusian issue. And it is indeed important for us to maintain relations with representatives of democratic Belarus.

We believe that the time will come when Belarus — democratic Belarus — will become the fourth participant in the Lublin Triangle. Now I have received an instruction from the president to appoint a special representative and will submit a candidacy for consideration in the near future. We are still determining the title of this position, but it will be an official authorized for contacts with democratic Belarusian forces.

— Let's define the terminology. Who is Aliaksandr Lukashenka?

— He is the so-called president. Ukraine, like other European countries, does not consider him a legitimately elected president of Belarus.

— And this entails consequences. For example, it means that the immunity of a head of state does not apply to him. And it seems to me that there are sufficient grounds to accuse citizen Lukashenka of committing many crimes against humanity. Does Ukraine plan such steps?

— I also believe that the current Belarusian regime is co-responsible for Russian aggression. In 2022, it provided Belarusian territory for the offensive against Ukraine. Missiles flew from their territory. This makes them accomplices in the aggression against Ukraine.

And even now we see new elements of support for Russian aggression from the Lukashenka regime. They provide their infrastructure for drone attacks on Ukrainian territory. I deliberately do not specify details, but we know them, we legally record every such case, we notify the UN about the Belarusian regime's complicity in the aggression, and we will raise the issue of sanctions against the individuals and companies involved — in particular, those involved in building this infrastructure.

— Is Lukashenka personally responsible for this, or is everything controlled by Russia there and he has no say?

— Currently, Belarus has turned into a "governor-generalship." Lukashenka is not a subject, and unfortunately, the entire Belarusian people suffer from this. At the same time, the Lukashenka regime and he personally must be held accountable for their complicity in Russian aggression. And there are all legal grounds for this.

— We've dealt with Lukashenka. And who is Tsikhanouskaya for us, what is her status?

— We proceed from the fact that she is one of the leaders of the democratic Belarusian forces. That's why you saw her meeting with President Zelenskyy. By the way, the conversation was very substantive and will have further development. And regarding Belarus, I also remind you about the Kastus Kalinouski Regiment, which is fighting as part of the Armed Forces of Ukraine, and we truly appreciate this.

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