Word: belarusian
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...trading partner. But Lukashenko may not be able to keep up this balancing act for long. "If he wants to survive with Russia angry at his border, then Lukashenko needs to do some more thorough [political reforms] then he is willing to admit," says Vitali Silitski, director of the Belarusian Institute for Strategic Studies, pointing out that Belarus, run by a leader often referred to as Europe's last dictator, has a long way to go toward democracy. "At the moment, he is using only his survival instincts...
...been a while since Russia pulled out the "sanitary regulations" card to ban imports over a spat with one of its neighbors. But on June 6, after Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko publicly voiced his fury at Russia's raising of energy prices, Russia imposed a ban on dairy products from Belarus, sparking a so-called milk war that has seen tensions between the former allies escalate daily...
...accused of beating her while in police custody in November last year. The day before Palyakova's death, the state-run newspaper Sovietskaya Belorussiya, or Soviet Belarus, had published an article mocking her and her complaint. "The state drove her to suicide," says Valery Shchukin, a member of the Belarusian Helsinki Committee for human rights who worked with Palyakova. "The police wouldn't leave her alone - ringing her late at night. The judgment was the end of the world for her. She was very frightened...
Analysts say that while the Belarusian leader is looking to expand his options beyond traditional ally Russia, he is also trying to get as much as he can from both sides. "Lukashenka is feeling pressure from Russia both economically and politically," says Marples, "He is very much sucked into the Russian orbit and seeks some release." Belarus has in the last six months received a $2 billion loan from Russia, and is under pressure to recognize the Russian-backed breakaway republics of South Ossetia and Abkhazia in Georgia. E.U. politicians have warned against such a move...
Others disagree. "In effect, the E.U. has taken away its previous conditions of democracy and human rights," says Valery Karbalevich, a Belarusian political analyst. "They still talk about them, but they don't mean it." And Lukashenka seems less than committed to living up to the initiative's "shared values, including democracy, the rule of law, and respect for human rights." Just last week he said, "It's wrong [for the E.U.] to disturb us over minor points," and called the opposition "enemies of the Belarusian people...