Where does Belarus stand three years after the protests?
Three years have passed since the mass protests that erupted in Belarus in August 2020 after the presidential elections were brutally quashed by long-time ruler Alexander Lukashenka. Europe's press sees a connection with Russia's war against Ukraine and expresses hopes that change will come to the country.
Ukrainians, Poles and Belarusians have a common goal
Belarusian society has already made its decision, Onet.pl reminds readers:
“The political revolution in Belarus did not succeed in the end, but the social revolution undoubtedly did. Belarusian society has clearly sided with the democratic West. This cannot remain without consequences in the long run. ... We must not forget that Belarus is no less important than Ukraine, especially for Poland. That is why we must not lose sight of this issue. Kyiv, Minsk and Warsaw have a common goal, and that's really true [as a slogan chanted at Polish solidarity demonstrations goes]!”
Support the opposition
The Lukashenka regime could collapse at any moment, writes Frédéric Petit, MP for the Mouvement démocrate (Modem) party, in Le Monde:
“It is not utopian or futile to anticipate a regime change in Belarus. ... Lukashenka's power is weak, he can only cling on to it with the support of Putin's regime, which has itself grown ever weaker since the start of the war in Ukraine. ... Supporting the Belarusian opposition means helping Ukraine; and helping Ukraine also helps the Belarusian opposition.”