Only Belarus soldiers on

Alexander Lukashenko describes his government as an island of stability in a volatile, violent world

The entire planet is in chaos, sliding slowly but surely into the abyss. Protests have consumed the United States. Hong Kong is boiling over in China. The Indian-Chinese border is flaring up. There are sparks flying at the border between India and Pakistan. There are still burning pockets of instability in Northern Africa. Passions are being inflamed around Iran, Venezuela, and North Korea. The post-Soviet space isn’t doing so well, either. And on this fault line, Belarus is the only place of calm in central Eurasia. Russia is afraid of losing us because it has no allies left without us. The West is showing an interest in us. China, too, is relying on our stability. Belarus has a multi-vector future: we will partner with the West, with China, and with countries far and wide. And Russia will always remain our ally, no matter who is in office there or here. That is true, despite the fact that Moscow has traded deep fraternal ties for a partnership.

Summary by Grigory Levchenko,translation by Kevin Rothrock

Cover photo: Oksana Skendzic / SIPA / Scanpix / LETA