"Lukashenko Echoes The Kremlin In The Same Tone"
- 13.09.2026, 5:30
By the time everyone realizes it, it will already be too late.
Russian dictator Vladimir Putin is waging a hybrid war against Europe—the annexation of Crimea is an example of such a war—said Pavel Lakichuk, head of security programs at the “Strategy XXI” Center for Global Studies, during an appearance on Radio NV.
“Putin stated that Russia has nothing to divide with Europe; everything was divided following World War II. But let me remind you: following World War II, the Soviet Union’s sphere of influence and control extended as far as East Germany. That’s a subtle hint that this isn’t really about Ukraine,” he said.
According to the expert, the Russian dictator is waging a hybrid war against Europe.
“The essence of hybrid war is not what Europeans understand it to be. Europeans still consider a hybrid war to be a situation where some sub-threshold actions are taken—that’s not yet a war, it’s a hybrid war; but as soon as a real war begins, that’s when it really starts. But, according to Gerasimov, the essence of hybrid warfare lies in the fact that the enemy must not realize that a war is being waged against it until the moment when it is already time for it to surrender—when it has lost the war,” Lakiichuk explained.
He emphasized that the Crimean case was an example of precisely this kind of hybrid war.
“Little green men enter Crimea, seize Ukrainian facilities, while Kyiv and Europe look on in surprise and don’t understand what’s happening. At a meeting of the National Security and Defense Council, they say: ‘No, no, just don’t bring out the tanks, because that will mean war.’ Our European partners say: ‘Wait, don’t do anything; everything will become clear soon, and when it does, we’ll figure it all out.’ And then Putin holds a pseudo-referendum, incorporates Crimea into the Russian Federation, and says, “No, those weren’t little green men—they were our military—and Crimea is now Russian territory.” That’s it—the war is over. It was only when it ended that everyone realized it had been a war,” the expert explained.
He continued by saying that this is precisely Putin’s current strategy toward Europe, and toward Ukraine in particular:
“Putin views Ukraine as a springboard for an offensive against Europe. But at the same time, he says: ‘No, no, don’t worry.’ And Lukashenko, in the same tone, declares that Belarus poses no threat to any of its European neighbors. Neither Lithuania, nor Estonia, nor Poland should worry. Ukraine isn’t on that list.”