Svetlana Tikhanovskaya (Mikashevichy, 1982) meets with EL MUNDO during the meeting of European socialists held in Amsterdam last weekend, to which she was invited. Her husband was released last June after being imprisoned for five years by the regime, and they now reside in Vilnius (Lithuania). She believes Lukashenko's regime is "quite fragile" and that they are working to "be prepared for the moment when the opportunity arises to hold free and fair elections."
What is the situation in Belarus?
There are still thousands of political prisoners behind bars, people detained for their stance against the war, for supporting Ukraine, or for being against Lukashenko. All media outlets have been destroyed, all NGOs have been liquidated. People live under total repression. But despite this, they do not lose their energy. We have underground movements, we carry out small acts of sabotage. We do not ask our democratic partners to fight on our behalf, but we do need solidarity, support, and assistance. We work hard to be prepared for the opportunity to hold free and fair elections. To carry out reforms and have a new Constitution.And when will that moment come?It is difficult to say. It is the same question as 'when will the war in Ukraine end?'. But we have to be prepared.Maybe in 2030? [The year Lukashenko assures he will not run for reelection]I wouldn't be so pessimistic because Lukashenko's regime is quite fragile at the moment. Lukashenko, of course, serves Putin's interests. He does not care about our independence or the Belarusian nation. But even within the nomenklatura, among the authorities of his system, officials want independence. Of course, they cannot say it publicly, but they help us with information, with different data. For example, how Lukashenko makes money from the blood of Ukrainians, how he produces ammunition for the Russian army. These are data that come from inside the country. But the change does not depend solely on Belarusians. It depends on the courage and strength of the united democratic world. Because we see how dictators are testing the limits, testing Europe, actually.
What Putin is doing.
Of course. He has already sent drones to NATO countries, carried out provocations on the border, sent illegal migrants to the borders... And if we simply ignore these signals, dictators will continue to advance.
Will there be an escalation of the conflict? A war in the EU?
I remember how no one believed Russia would attack Ukraine. No one believed it because from our perception, it was impossible. And now we cannot believe that Russia would dare to attack Europe, but we are already seeing signs, indications that it might dare. And that is why we encourage Europe to strengthen its security, its military presence.
What is Lukashenko's role in the war?Lukashenko is complicit in this war. He deceived our country, made Belarus participate in the attacks on Ukraine. He tries to appear as a political actor in this war, but he is a puppet of Putin. He will follow all his orders. And if Putin needs to use Belarusian territory, our infrastructure, or our facilities to open a second front against Ukraine or against Europe, Lukashenko will allow it
.If the war intensifies, will Lukashenko get fully involved?
Lukashenko is already involved. It is true that the Belarusian army is not participating in the war, but that is not to Lukashenko's credit. It is the merit of the people, who cannot even imagine Belarusians fighting against Ukrainians because we are very close nations. And in case the army were sent to fight on neighboring territory, the soldiers would desert, escape, or surrender, but they would not fight against Ukrainians.
What does Putin want? How would you explain to a Spanish citizen what his objectives are?
Putin believes that Russia has no borders and, of course, his ambition is to restore the Soviet empire. If we look at history, we can imagine how he conceives that empire, which countries are included in it. For example, Lithuania was occupied by the Soviet Union decades ago. And Putin also wants to show the democratic world that Democracy is weak, that he can do whatever he wants, and that democracy is not strong enough to counter his attempts.
And what do you think of Trump?
We truly appreciate his efforts to stop wars around the world, to deal with this war in Ukraine. He needs success stories. And that's fine. Also, the fact that he is involved in efforts to release political prisoners in Belarus is something we are deeply grateful for.