Belarus should not be given as a consolation prize to Putin - Tsikhanouskaya

RIGA - The world should not forget about Belarus and it should not be given as a consolation prize to Russian dictator Vladimir Putin, said Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, leader of the Belarusian democratic opposition, who is visiting Latvia these days, in an interview with Latvian Radio.

According to her, the main tasks of the Belarusian democratic opposition remain the fight against the regime of Alexander Lukashenko and for the release of political prisoners, as well as the fight against the absorption of Belarus into Russia.

Tsikhanouskaya noted that the opposition in exile has to work very hard to draw attention to the situation and repression in Belarus, as the world's attention is more focused on the war in Ukraine and Gaza.

The opposition leader estimated that support for Lukashenko is declining and that he is currently likely to be supported by around 15%-17% of Belarusians. "Belarus is now like Stalin's regime, where everything is oppressed," added Tsikhanouskaya.