According to a document allegedly drawn up by the Russian administration, the country plans to gradually annex Belarus by 2030. We checked whether the actions according to the document have been taken.
Several European media news on Tuesday (you will switch to another service) About a document allegedly drawn up by the Russian administration, according to which the country plans to annex Belarus by 2030.
The allegedly leaked document reveals the detailed steps Russia would use to connect the countries. We checked whether actions according to the plan have been taken in Belarus.
Joint military exercises
Kyiv Independent says (you switch to another service)that the plans presented in the document would include, among other things, the organization of joint military exercises between Russia and Belarus between 2022 and 2025.
During the war in Ukraine, the military exercises organized by the countries have not only expanded but also expanded caused concern (you switch to another service) Belarus joining the war in Ukraine. Yesterday, Tuesday, the Ministry of Defense of Belarus announced that it had planned more than 150 joint exercises with Russia for the rest of the year, reports news agency Reuters.
When Russia started a full-scale war in Ukraine almost to the day a year ago, it was also attacked from the soil of Belarus.
Constitutional reforms
The alleged plan also talks about constitutional reforms in Belarus suitable for Russia’s purposes.
Autocratically ruling Belarus since 1994 Alexander Lukashenko organized a referendum on constitutional reform in February last year. In the vote decided (you switch to another service) about the extensive prosecution protection for Lukashenka, but also about increasing the presence of Russian troops in the country.
With the reform, Russia is allowed to station its soldiers and nuclear weapons permanently on the soil of Belarus.
A familiar tactic from Ukraine
Yahoo News says (you switch to another service), that Russia and Belarus have also agreed in 2021 on the unification plan affecting the countries’ economy and trade regulation. According to the leaked document, dismantling trade barriers and economic unification would also be part of Russia’s action plan.
It is therefore possible to interpret some of the recent political developments in Belarus as being in accordance with Russia’s alleged plan.
Russia has used a similar tactic of cultural assimilation in the territories it has seized in eastern Ukraine. The goal is to hide local identity from view and replace everything from passports to currency and language with Russian options.