“They are not allies. They cannot trust each other,” the politician told the AFP news agency in an interview in Brussels. “Lukashenko can betray Prigozhin at any moment, Prigozhin can betray Lukashenko.”
The leader of Belarus was a mediator in efforts to end the rebellion, and according to the terms of the agreement reached, as Lukashenko said on Tuesday, Prigozhin flew to Belarus.
As Cihanouska pointed out, much is still unclear about the terms of the agreement.
She also emphasized that Lukashenko’s help to Putin is a “marriage of calculation” to save his regime in Belarus.
“It was not that he only saved Putin’s face or saved Prigozhin or did not allow a civil war to break out in Russia,” the opposition leader explained. “He only cared about his personal survival, because Lukashenko knows – if the power in Russia pushes, Lukashenko will be next.”
The mass arrival of Prigozhin and his warriors in Belarus could pose a threat to Europe, Cihanouska warned.
“The presence of Prigozhin himself and “Wagner” units on our territory, first of all, poses a threat to the people of Belarus and our independence,” said the leader. “Even more – its presence can pose a threat to Ukraine and also to our western neighbors.”
She warned that the Wagnerites could be used to suppress protests in Belarus.
“This man has brought rapists and murderers to our land,” Cihanouska said, recalling that “Wagner” includes many criminals recruited in Russian prisons. “What will these people do in our country? That’s a big question. How will they behave?”
2023-06-29 10:32:23
#Cihanouska #Prigozhin #trust #Lukashenko
