On Thursday, November 19, 2020, The Warsaw Institute Review had the pleasure of conducting an expert discussion titled “Belarus. Over 100 days of the road to freedom.” The starting point for the debate was the article by Grzegorz Kuczyński – “Belarus: the war for the Russian world.”
After the introduction outlining the internal conflict of our eastern neighbour, Grzegorz Kuczyński analyzed the history of the Belarusian revolution, in retrospect, assessing the next steps taken by the Lukashenka regime, his opposition led by Ciechanouska, and Russia’s perspective. The expert described the significance of the People’s Ultimatum, commenting that it was held late enough for the illegitimate president to have already developed organizational mechanisms to suppress social opposition. Subsequently, prof. Tomasz Grosse talked about the reaction of the West – in particular the European Union – to the conflicts in Belarus.The emphasis was placed on the lack of the appropriate interest of Germany and France, the main EU players, to increase diplomatic involvement and support the Ciechanouska movement. The professor also outlined the prospects for the future involvement of the Western Europe in supporting Belarusians. The last speaker, Paweł Paszek, placed the chaos of Lukashenka’s regime in a broader geopolitical perspective. He presented the significance of the conflict for the US and China in the current imbalance in strength among the globalsuperpowers. The discussion ended with questions from the audience – prof. Grosse addressed the issue of the prospect of using the events beyond the eastern border to strengthen Poland’s relations with the Baltic States. G. Kuczyński, on the other hand, summarized the disinformation actions that Russia has taken in the face of its partner’s political turmoil.
We encourage you to watch the entire material:
On the same day, the Warsaw Institute’s report titled “From the history of the Belarusian revolution” was published. The study presents details of the conflict, its perspectives and the current analysis of events in Belarus – from the 15th day of the protests to the People’s Ultimatum. The publication also contains recommendations for the Polish diplomacy developed in a debate by the representatives of leading think-tanks, analytical centers and the National Security Bureau, organized by the Warsaw Institute.
Speakers:
- Dr hab. prof. UW Tomasz Grzegorz Grosse – a lecturer at the Department of Politics of the European Union at the University of Warsaw. He specializes in the analysis of economic politics of the EU and in the Member States, as well as in Europeanization and theoretical thought of European integration.
- Grzegorz Kuczyński – the director of the Euro-Asia Program at the Warsaw Institute and an expert on eastern issues. Author of many books and publications on the backstage of Russian domestic and foreign affairs.
- Paweł Paszak – an expert of the Warsaw Institute and the Institute of New Europe on Chinese foreign affairs and US-Chinese relations.
Moderator:
Paweł Pawłowski – the chairman of the Warsaw Institute Foundation Council and an expert of the Warsaw Institute on international cooperation and US politics.
We invite you to watch full video from our debate and to check future events organized by The Warsaw Institute Review!
