Tsikhanouskaya: “No union is worth losing yourself for”

Head of Belarus' the United Transitional Cabinet Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya made a statement on the occasion of the “Day of Unity of the Peoples of Belarus and Russia,” which is marked on April 2. “One dictatorial regime clings to another as its only support for holding onto power,” she writes. “And it pays for this union with independence, freedom, and human lives.”

Tsikhanouskaya points out that what is happening is “the complete subjugation of our country to the interests of the Kremlin.” “The Lukashenko regime has turned every neighbor against itself except one — and now has no choice but to follow it in everything,” continues the head of the UTC. “Every step the regime takes toward Putin pushes Belarus closer to dissolving into Russia.”

Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya emphasizes that Belarusians did not choose this path. “We don’t need alliances that lead to the loss of lives and our national identity,” she writes. “We have already shown many times that we can create artistic masterpieces known around the world. Build an economy that doesn’t depend on loans. Raise and educate new scientists and inventors who work for the good of peace and the future — not for war and propaganda.”

Tsikhanouskaya urges Belarusians to pass on their traditions and culture to their children, and to support Belarusian musicians, poets, writers, and artists: “In all the diversity of Belarusian culture — find something that speaks to your soul. Believe me, no alliance in the world is worth losing all of this.”