In the Kremlin know about the arrest in Belarus of 33 Russian citizens, which the Minsk considers the employees of private military companies Wagner, and forward of Minsk “comprehensive information”.
According to the press-Secretary of President Dmitry Peskov, information about the illegal actions of the Russians, which could become the reason for their detention, no. The fact that “some organizations from Russia send, say, someone in order to destabilize the situation in Belarus” on the eve of the presidential elections, is “innuendo”, said Peskov. “Russia and Belarus — is the Federal government, the allies, close partners, this cannot be and speeches” — he stressed.
The investigative Committee of Belarus reported that the Russians are suspected of preparing mass disturbances on the eve of presidential elections, a criminal case.
The Russian side has been emphasized gently against the actions of the Union of Belarus and its intelligence services. Although these allies do not behave. It wasn’t said any harsh words and demands the immediate release of citizens of Russia, which Moscow believes is innocent. However, Belarusian law enforcers have softened the tone: instead of the original charges of preparing acts of terrorism was put forward — the preparation of the riots.
Like, of course, to propose some “a beautiful version of” something like that, that everything that happens is a “contractual a match” between Minsk and Moscow that started with the sole purpose to give the opportunity for Lukashenko to stand “Savior of the Fatherland”, to tighten the screws against the opposition to win the most difficult for all time of presidency election. However, this scenario is too “beautiful” to be true. In fact, Lukashenko in his relations with Moscow not for the first time allows himself to such antics. And every time he’s gotten away with it.
In 2017 the Belarusian court on the direct orders of the President issued a Russian citizen, blogger, Andrey Lapshin, who also had Israeli citizenship, Azerbaijan, where he was threatened with criminal prosecution for check in Nagorno-Karabakh through Georgia. The Minister of foreign Affairs of Russia Sergey Lavrov said that Moscow opposes the issuance Lapshin Azerbaijan, but that is limited.
Even more egregious case occurred with the General Director of Uralkali Vladislav Baumgertner, who was arrested in Minsk in the summer of 2013 on charges of abuse of power, despite the fact that he was invited by the Belarusian government for negotiations. It was purely an economic argument: “Uralkali” then announced the termination of export sales through joint trader Belarusian side, which angered Lukashenko. Top Manager three months spent under arrest, a hostage, while Lukashenko has not achieved Vygone possible deal for themselves.
No less humiliating for Russia in 2018, the case of three journalists of the Agency Regnum Dmitri Alenkina, Sergey Chipenko and Yuri Pavlovets, who are held in jail for 14 months and was convicted for allegedly inciting hatred of the Belarusians, but in fact a sharp criticism of the government’s policies of rapprochement with the anti-Russian wing of the opposition. Although all three were citizens of Belarus, Moscow’s reaction to the condemnation of its supporters was much softer than even the European Union, which admitted is a political case. Moscow confined itself to statement of the representative of the foreign Ministry Maria Zakharova called “the Belarusian side the most responsible approach to the consideration of this criminal case” and to comply with obligations in respect of freedom of expression.
As for riots and such, the prosecution has to meet in Belarus to Russians: in 2011, Artyom Breus and Ivan Gaponov, who were arrested for participating in mass rallies in Minsk, escaped with only a fine of 3,5 thousand dollars.
There is an opinion that Moscow allows many Lukashenka because on key issues of relations with the West he not crossed the “red line”, remaining though capricious and inconsistent, but an ally. So, he never seriously, for example, raised the question about staying in the Republic of the two major Russian military installations: communication unit of the Navy of Russia “Vileyka” (radio station “Antey”) and radar “Volga” (node “Baranavichy”) in the Russian system of missile warning, the lease of which expires in 2021.
However, there was one case very hard Russia’s relations to the trampling of the President of Belarus standards of justice and human rights. When he was arrested, the journalist-critic of the Lukashenka regime Pavel Sheremet, and then sentenced to two years imprisonment and to one year of probation, the President of Russia Boris Yeltsin in 1997 has not allowed the plane Lukashenko to visit Yaroslavl and publicly demanded: “Let the first Sheremet’s release”. Which was immediately done.
