Andrei Sannikov on Lukashenko’s latest gambit — and why the West keeps taking the bait

Andrei Sannikov on Lukashenko’s latest gambit — and why the West keeps taking the bait

From The Naked Pravda by Медуза / Meduza

December 5, 2025 · 24 min

About this episode

Andrei Sannikov discusses the implications of Trump's outreach to Lukashenko and the potential for repeating past mistakes in Belarusian politics.

Belarusian activist Andrei Sannikov warns that Trump’s outreach to Lukashenko may repeat a long-standing trap, where Minsk trades select prisoner releases for sanctions relief while continuing to jail more dissidents and legitimize repression.

People in this episode

Guest: Andrei Sannikov

Topics covered

  • Belarus
  • political repression
  • international relations
  • sanctions
  • activism

Keywords

  • Belarus
  • Lukashenko
  • Trump
  • sanctions
  • dissidents
  • repression
  • activism

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Lukashenko, Minsk

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