Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya was forced to leave Belarus after challenging Alexander Lukashenko in the 2020 presidential election, which was rejected as rigged by the United States and European Union.
There are growing fears Lukashenko, Putin’s closest ally in Europe could order his army to join the war in Ukraine, with the Ukrainian military warning that “covert mobilization” of the Belarusian military is taking place “under the guise of training sessions.”
According to the Belarusian Ministry of Defense, 9,000 Russian soldiers have been deployed to Belarus.
Speaking to Newsweek, Tsikhanouskaya urged Belarusian troops “to defect, to change sides, to lay down arms” if ordered into Ukraine.
Tsikhanouskaya said she’d been campaigning against the involvement of Belarusian forces since the war began.
“We conducted the informational and political campaign trying to convince every soldier, every official to sabotage, but not to join the war,” she told Newsweek. “And we will continue to do this. The fact that our troops did not enter Ukraine is a result of the very hard work of many people. We have developed instructions [on] what to do if you are sent to Ukraine.”
Asked whether Russian soldiers in Belarus should be considered part of an “occupying army,” Tsikhanouskaya replied: “Indeed.”
“No one called for them. They are in Belarus against the Belarus constitution, against the will of our people and against our national interests. The deployment of Russian troops on Belarus territory is illegal, and we demand that every Russian soldier leave Belarus unconditionally,” she said.
“Many people thought that Russian troops are coming to Belarus in order to attack Ukraine. The truth is that they are here for Belarus. Their goal is to make sure Belarus remains under Putin’s control. After significant failures in Ukraine, he wants to secure Belarus after himself.”
The 2020 presidential election in Belarus sparked protests across the country, which were brutally suppressed by security forces loyal to Lukashenko.
Tsikhanouskaya, who many opposition activists believe is the real winner of the 2020 election, said she would “absolutely” be ready to head a new government if Lukashenko falls.
She suggested that Belarusian entry into the war could spark regime change in Minsk.
“Direct intervention would catalyze the changes in Belarus. Now he [Lukashenko] is trying to pretend that he protects the country from war, but we all know that he himself is the main threat along with Putin,” Tsikhanouskaya said.
“We already formed the Cabinet in August, and it is ready to become an interim government until new elections. People who defect from the system already join the Cabinet. But the moment when new elections take place, the cabinet will be dismissed. I promised Belarusians that I am here only ’til new elections.”
Tsikhanouskaya added that Lukashenko has become “Putin’s vassal” and “doesn’t represent Belarusians anymore.”
Some Belarusian exiles have joined the Ukrainian military to fight Putin’s invasion, with at least 16 reportedly killed by July.
Newsweek reached out to the Belarusian Foreign Ministry for comment.
