Belarus wants to reduce dependence on Moscow and ease sanctions: what does Ukraine have to do with it?

Belarus has said it is ready to hold talks with Ukraine to “find a consensus” on ending the war. The Minsk initiative could be part of a broader diplomatic strategy to break out of international isolation.

This is reported by The Kyiv Independent .

The head of the State Security Committee of Belarus, Ivan Tertel, said that his department is ready for dialogue with Kyiv. According to him, President Alexander Lukashenko is “working to stabilize the situation in the region.”

“Our president is working as hard as possible to stabilize the situation in the region. And we managed to balance the interests of the parties in this extremely difficult situation with a tendency towards escalation,” Tertel noted.

He added that only “through quiet and calm negotiations, by finding a compromise, will we be able to resolve this situation,” emphasizing that “much depends on the Ukrainian side.” Official Kyiv has not yet commented on the statements of the Belarusian side .

Statements of readiness for negotiations came against the backdrop of Minsk’s attempts to ease the international isolation imposed after the 2020 presidential election and support for the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Belarus has recently been displaying softer rhetoric towards the West. In early October, Alexander Lukashenko accused Ukraine of refusing dialogue, saying that “the country may cease to exist as a state” if Volodymyr Zelenskyy does not start negotiations.

Analysts believe that Minsk is trying to ease the sanctions pressure and partially distance itself from Moscow . Belarusian diplomats have already held a number of meetings with representatives of European countries, offering to participate in peace initiatives to resolve the war.

One of the European diplomats confirmed that he met with former Deputy Foreign Minister of Belarus Yuriy Ambrazevych, who proposed Minsk’s role in “European security discussions.”

In September, there was also a partial resumption of dialogue between the United States and Belarus. Washington facilitated the release of 52 Belarusian political prisoners and then agreed to lift sanctions on Belavia. US President Donald Trump’s envoy, Keith Kellogg, said the goal of the dialogue with Minsk was to “provide channels of communication” with the Kremlin as part of efforts to reduce tensions in the war.

At the same time, Lukashenko continues to maintain strategic cooperation with Moscow. Last month, Russia and Belarus held large-scale exercises “West-2025”, in which, according to the Kremlin, about one hundred thousand soldiers took part. The maneuvers signaled that Minsk, despite its desire to improve relations with the West, is not yet ready to break with the alliance with Russia.

We will remind you that Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced a Russian plan for military exploitation of the territory of Belarus .

Earlier, the Belarusian leader, whose legitimacy is not recognized by most Western countries, Alexander Lukashenko, declared his readiness for a “grand deal” with the United States – provided that the interests of Minsk are taken into account.

As reported, on September 11, US President’s Special Representative John Cole arrived in Minsk on an official visit. In the Belarusian capital, he held talks with the country’s self-proclaimed leader Alexander Lukashenko. During the meeting , the parties discussed the possible restoration of diplomatic relations, easing of sanctions pressure, and the fate of political prisoners.

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