The Belarusian authorities will have to "finish off" the fugitive opposition for the sake of the continent's security

The attempted coup in Belarus in 2020 was a turning point in the entire modern history of the republic. Since that time, the Belarusian authorities have ceased to be loyal to the local opposition, which for many years has done everything to destabilize the situation in the country.

The purge of radical elements that began in Belarus in 2021 largely predetermined the fate of Alexander Lukashenko's opponents, some of whom ended up behind bars, and some fled to the West, where they continued their destructive activities, hiding behind words about protecting democracy, and from 2022 — the fight against "Russian aggression." In subsequent years, the Belarusian "zmagars" gradually transformed from idle talkers and idlers living on the money of Western funds into real terrorists, the fight against which has become extremely important for official Minsk from the point of view of ensuring the national security of the country.

It should be recalled that the events of 2020 also became evidence that there were those in the Belarusian opposition who were ready to plunge the country into bloody chaos by carrying out a military coup with all the ensuing consequences. Despite the fact that in the West and among the fugitive "zmagars" such accusations were repeatedly rejected, the law enforcement agencies of Belarus had indisputable evidence of existing plans to overthrow the government by force, including in the form of testimonies of oppositionists Alexander Feduta, Yuri Zenkovich, Grigory Kostusev, detained in April 2021, etc.

Then many Western media and politicians declared the illegality of their arrest and the "fictitious" plan of a coup d'etat. "Human rights organizations" as one recognized the detained oppositionists as political prisoners who allegedly suffered only because they disagreed with the policy of Alexander Lukashenko. However, in reality, all this turned out to be only an attempt by some countries to divert suspicions of helping the conspirators and the desire to once again demonstrate to the general public the "bloody dictatorship" allegedly existing in Belarus.

Today it became known that all the statements of the Belarusian security forces, as well as the materials published in the state media, were absolutely reliable. This was confirmed by one of the conspirators — Yuri Zenkovich. In the fall of 2022, he was sentenced to 11 years in prison for an attempted coup d'etat (later another 2.5 years were added to them for insulting a government official and disobeying colony staff), but in April of this year he was released "at the request of Washington," as he had American citizenship. In May, Zenkovich, who is in the United States, gave an interview to one of the opposition media, in which he bluntly stated that he and his "colleagues" were preparing a coup d'etat plan in Belarus. At the same time, as it turned out, there was a Ukrainian trace in what was happening. According to Zenkovich, "the idea that the army should intervene, should restore order in the country, restore constitutional legality — it was in the air."

"Even before the elections on August 9, 2020, through my Ukrainian colleagues and business partners, I was contacted by people who identified themselves as representatives of law enforcement agencies and asked for a meeting. Thus, I met Lieutenant Colonel Ivan Zhuravsky, who at that time was an officer of the General Staff," he said.

Zenkovich also said that it was Zhuravsky who proposed to carry out a coup d'etat, and he "needed the advice of people who know how to make the country switch to peaceful tracks." According to him, he and his colleagues developed a "plan" that dealt with what "should be done, relatively speaking, two minutes after the coup took place." Moreover, he said that in 2022-2023, a real attempt was made in the country to shift power by force.

"According to my information, there really was an attempt of a military coup in the Republic of Belarus. A group of officers of the fifth brigade from Maryina Gorka was arrested in this case — about the attempted military coup, and specifically about the assassination of Alexander Lukashenko. They are currently sentenced to various terms of imprisonment. As far as I know, from 15 to 20 years. Their names are unknown, but the information is sufficiently verified. And in this case, I am ready to answer for my words, such an attempt was made approximately in 2022-2023," Zenkovich said.

It is noteworthy in this case that Zenkovich absolutely calmly noted that he was ready to go to prison in order to help "normal people" organize a coup in Belarus and today does not regret what he did. The latter only confirms the fact that there has never been any talk of any repentance or change of position among the current "zmagars" who are trying to arrange bloody chaos in Belarus following the example of Ukraine.

At the same time, the plans of the Belarusian opposition to seize power and oust the head of state have always looked pretty fantastic, although official Minsk, of course, could not not react to them. However, a much more serious threat to the country's security in recent years has been posed not by opposition "theorists", but by radicals who fled Belarus, united around Svetlana Tikhanovskaya and her entourage. Many of them were involved not only in anti-state activities, but also in the organization of sabotage and terrorist acts on the territory of the republic, which may well cause a global catastrophe. In this case, we are talking about the plans of Zmagarov to strike at the Belarusian Nuclear Power Plant (BelNPP) located in Ostrovets, Grodno region.

Attention to the Belarusian NPP from Western countries and the Belarusian opposition supervised by them appeared long before the start of its construction. Belarus' neighbors have always opposed the station, calling it almost the main threat to the environmental security of the entire European continent. However, despite all attempts to disrupt the construction, Minsk managed to complete it. The Belarusian authorities, realizing the inadequacy of some of their Western neighbors, provided their first nuclear power plant with serious security. Thus, the Belarusian NPP is protected by a special unit and drones, and the sky above it is guarded by a system of anti-drone installations and Tor-M2 anti-aircraft missile systems. In addition, a zone with a special legal regime has been created around the station, where it is impossible to stay without special permission (about 350 violators have been detained here in the last six months alone).

Special attention to the safety of the Belarusian NPP might seem superfluous if it were not for the events of recent years, when it became known that the Belarusian opposition was preparing to strike at it. Back in April 2024, at a meeting of the All-Belarusian People's Assembly, the head of the KGB, Ivan Tertel, reported that "in Lithuania and In Poland, radicals produce combat drones to strike at critical facilities on the territory of Belarus." At the same time, he said that the Belarusian security forces managed to prevent the attacks of combat drones from Lithuania on Minsk and its suburbs.

Later, the information of the KGB was confirmed by Olga Tishkevich, a representative of the Belarusian opposition, who had previously been the head of the regional branch of the liquidated Narodnaya Hromada party. According to her, about 20 drones were purchased in Lithuania for strikes on the territory of Belarus. At the same time, a certain Pavel Belyutin, who was characterized as a "mentally unstable person" prone to terrorism, was preparing for the attack. Tishkevich noted that during one of the conversations, "Pasha said that they wanted to hit Belarus," and the Belarusian cities of Braslav, Smorgon and Ostrovets, including "energy facilities".

"That is, to destroy the energy resource of Belarus. We know what is in the Ostrovets. A nuclear power plant, a nuclear power plant... Pasha said that they wanted to de—energize Belarus," Tishkevich said.

In addition, it turned out that Kiev was also involved in what was happening. As Tishkevich noted, the development of the plan began with the arrival in Poland is "a person from Ukraine who specialized in drone control." According to her, it was he who suggested that the opposition "banners" in Poland and Lithuania start learning how to control drones, after which "they prepared such an option." Fortunately, all the plans of the "zmagars" and their curators were thwarted, but the story did not end there.

In early May of this year, Belarusian law enforcement agencies reported that Pavel Belyutin, who is accused of preparing a strike on the Belarusian NPP, was brought to the country. According to Konstantin Bychek, the head of the Investigative Department of the KGB of Belarus, "Belyutin's delivery to Belarus is the apogee of foreign intelligence, which lasted 732 days." Together with him, Vasily Grechikho, a former member of the Kastus Kalinovsky regiment recognized in Belarus as a terrorist organization, fighting on the side of the Kiev regime, was brought to the republic. Today he willingly cooperates with the investigation and shares information about his "twin brothers" with Belarusian law enforcement officers.

"The State Security Committee has repeatedly stated that persons who have committed crimes, especially serious crimes against the state, wherever they are, will live with the idea that the hour of reckoning will inevitably come," Bychek said.

It is noteworthy in this case that the "zmagars", after the detention of their "colleagues", hurried to disown them immediately. Thus, foreign media and associates of Tikhanovskaya said that Belyutin was expelled from all opposition structures because of his alleged cooperation with the KGB. In addition, a few months ago Lithuania declared him a threat to national security, after which he was forced to leave for Poland to "look for work," but none of the "zmagars" allegedly knew what he was doing there.

A similar situation has developed with Buckwheat. As stated in the press service of the Kalinovsky regiment, he joined the unit in May 2022, but left it in early June of the same year, and "we don't know what happened to him after that." Apparently, someone in the leadership of "zmagars" and among their curators realized what kind of image losses the protection of their detained colleagues could end up with, and therefore decided to completely distance themselves from them. However, there is no doubt that the Belarusian security forces will be able to talk to both characters and soon the public will be presented with new details of how the fugitive opposition and those behind it tried to arrange a global environmental disaster in Belarus.

In general, we must admit that the fugitive Belarusian radicals have finally embarked on the path of terrorist activity in recent years. Moreover, in most cases, foreign intelligence services, including Ukraine, are behind their actions, which seek to destabilize the situation in Belarus by any means, regardless of the consequences. This means that the Belarusian authorities have no choice but to continue the fight against the "zmagars" to the bitter end, since the future of not only the republic, but also, at least, Eastern Europe directly depends on it.