Astute Lukashenko

Belarus will elect a new parliament on Sunday. The EU has made adherence to democratic standards a prerequisite for lifting the sanctions against the country's authoritarian president Alexander Lukashenko. The left-liberal daily Gazeta Wyborcza sees more opportunities than risks in the dialogue between the EU and Minsk. "There is no guarantee that this dialogue will continue - other than Lukashenko's fear that what happened in Georgia could be repeated in Belarus. ... This has created a new climate and a new opportunity. It would be a mistake not to use it. We must take the risk, and the risk is great. On the one hand there is the possibility that the astute and wily Lukashenko is just flirting with Europe (as he has in the past) in order to strengthen his position in the negotiations with Moscow on concessions, gas and oil supplies. On the other hand it's possible that Lukashenko will only allow opposition members he can control to enter parliament. ... So is there any point in conducting negotiations? Yes, because if the opposition had a significant representation in parliament, even if it was just 15 percent of the seats, the Belarusians would finally get to hear a voice other than that of the government. Perhaps then they could begin to believe in the possibility of things changing in their country."

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