Sovereignty, subordination, integration
Key issues between Moscow and Minsk
Sabine Fischer, Janis Kluge, Astrid Sahm
Deutsche Fassung
Abstract
The key to solving the political crisis in Belarus lies in Moscow. The Kremlin is not only pursuing geopolitical interests, but also fears that there may be fall-out from the Belarusian protests that will affect the domestic situation in Russia. For this reason, the Russian government is supporting Aliaksandr Lukashenka, the Belarusian head of state of many years, in his attempt to hold on to power. In return, Lukashenka is performing a U-turn with regard to integration policy and is abandoning his “see-saw policy” between the EU and Russia. If he succeeds in forming common supranational institutions, Vladimir Putin would finally have achieved the aim of his Belarus policy after two decades. However, it remains unclear whether his tactics will actually pay off.
(Osteuropa 10-11/2020, pp. 291–304)