The arrest of Raman Pratasevich changed the calculus for EU capitals, which agreed new sanctions with real bite. The EU could finally be succeeding in its search for strategic sovereignty
Belarus will continue to cause problems on the EU’s doorstep – so it is now time for a firmer, longer-term approach
The EU’s success is mixed in generating reform among Eastern Partnership countries. But patience and self-confidence remain its best bet for the future
Aliaksandr Lukashenka rewrote the rules to keep himself in power. But it did not succeed in 2020 – and the EU will not be able to remain a spectator to Belarus’s problems forever
Mark Leonard and Jeremy Shapiro predict ten bright and bold policy projections for the year to come
2021 will be a crucial year for the future of Belarus; in Venezuela, the future looks bleak. The Belarusian protesters can look and learn from the experience of the Venezuelan opposition
The current renaissance of civil society in Belarus has been possible thanks to, among other things, the development of the EU’s dialogue with the country in recent years
Unrest in Belarus has forced Moscow to look for new ways to strengthen its political and economic control in the country
The EU should nurture Belarusian protesters’ experiences with political participation and their demands for democracy
Russia’s goal in its neighbourhood is to regain influence, not to be surrounded by neutral, self-sufficient buffer states