Zhyhar: Lukashenka's lobbyists will soon issue an open letter for "EU's joining the humanitarian track"

The regime remains totalitarian, repressions continue, one cannot even say a word in Belarus, and Minsk continues to be part of the Russian machine, writes Uladzimir Zhyhar on his Facebook page. If there are no sanctions, there will be no instrument to restrain Aliaksandr Lukashenka. And if "sanctions do not work," then why has Minsk mobilized all forces to achieve their lifting, notes the former officer.

"Thus, a small group of those who want to negotiate with the regime will soon issue an open letter, appealing to the European Union to more actively engage in the 'humanitarian' track of the USA," writes Zhyhar. "They call trade a 'humanitarian track'," he emphasizes.

"The main topic hidden behind the US 'humanitarian track' will, of course, be sanctions. Allegedly, sanctions, as [Deputy Foreign Minister] Ihar Sakreta likes to say at various closed meetings, push Lukashenka's 'peace-loving' regime into the hands of the bloodthirsty Kremlin, but at the same time they 'do not work' so much and they have no influence on anything, that Lukashenka is ready to release people in exchange for their lifting."

Overall, the position is clear: people in exchange for concessions to the regime. But there are immediately several questions that one would like to ask those who will support such an appeal.

1. How do you guarantee that after the lifting of sanctions, the regime will not continue to imprison people? By what means? Explain a clear and understandable mechanism for everyone! And if the regime continues to do so — which I personally have no doubt about — what will you do? Are you ready to take responsibility?

2. "Release everyone" is abstract. "Everyone" — how many? 1300, and the rest were unlucky, as Krautsov said? Or how? Do you even know how many people are imprisoned in total?

3. If repressions do not end, how will the signatories lobby for the reinstatement of sanctions in response to the violation of agreements? Are you ready to develop and propose a detailed plan for the reinstatement of sanction restrictions? If so, we eagerly await to review it.

4. What about those who were expelled or have already been expelled from the country? Are you ready to take responsibility for their fates? What guarantees are there that after "normalization" they will be able to safely return to Belarus not after decades or retain grounds for legalization in the EU?

5. What should those who remained in the country do, a country where dozens of repressive laws are in force and applied in practice? What should they do when any word can lead to prison? Are you ready to take responsibility for those whom the regime will imprison?

And finally. How can you talk about sanction relaxations for the regime when it is currently maximally actively working for Russia, providing its war machine with everything necessary? Just don't tell me about non-military sanctions. I beg you.

This is only a small part of possible questions. Of course, no one will ever receive a clear, articulate, and structured answer. Because there isn't one. Because the lobbyists a priori cannot have an answer to any of these questions. Because even a complete idiot understands: they guarantee nothing of the above, they are not responsible for anything, and moreover, they cannot and will not bear any responsibility. Their task is to sell Lukashenka to the West as he is. To turn the page, forget the crimes, ignore the war.

And at the same time, it is somewhat strange (but actually not) and synchronous that Rybakov's statement sounds, about their expectation that "the USA will influence the European Union in a way favorable for Minsk."

If someone ever comes to you with a similar idea, remember "The Godfather." Paraphrasing:

"He who comes to you with an offer to arrange a meeting with Barzini — in our case, with Lukashenka — that person is a traitor. Remember that," Zhyhar concludes his position.

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