Russian Opposition Activist Tells How Protests In Belarus Scared Putin

• 31.10.2023, 8:10

The revolution saved our country.

The mass protests against Lukashenka did not lead to his downfall, but saved Belarus from being forcibly incorporated into Russia, Vladimir Milov, a Russian opposition politician, vice-president of the Free Russia Foundation and an adviser to the imprisoned Alexei Navalny, told LETA in an interview on the sidelines of the Riga conference.

"And this is what happened - after the 2022 protests, Putin realised that if he went there, he'd face an unfriendly population that didn't want his army and annexation. Putin is not announcing a second wave of mobilisation in Russia because he is afraid of Russian public opinion. For him, public opinion still matters. Putin wants to take the path of least resistance.

The protests three years ago saved Belarus from annexation. Putin would have gone in there if he hadn't seen that the whole country had risen up and didn't want, among other things, Russian occupation," says Milov.