Dissident leader wants Europe to consider Belarus in broader Ukraine peace deal

BERLIN — Exiled Belarusian opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya called on the EU not to overlook Belarus in negotiations on Ukraine and Europe’s future security.

Minsk “will continue to be a threat to our neighbors if [President Alexander] Lukashenko survives politically,” Tsikhanouskaya warned about the Russia-friendly state that neighbors Ukraine and was used as a launchpad for Kremlin chief Vladimir Putin’s forces to attack Kyiv in 2022.

Speaking to Anne McElvoy for the Brussels Playbook Week Ender podcast , Tsikhanouskaya said it’s “important for us politically that the European Union will not overlook Belarus in peace negotiations on Ukraine …[and] in the discussion about the future security architecture of our region.” She added that Lukashenko, who has been in power in Minsk since 1994, cannot be relied upon to provide a secure border with Ukraine.