Russia’s foreign intelligence service says U.S. and European-linked organizations are again preparing to destabilize Belarus, citing past protests, opposition figures abroad, and broader regional tensions.
By yourNEWS Media Newsroom
Russia’s Foreign Intelligence Service said Monday that Western non-governmental organizations are preparing another attempt to destabilize Belarus and alter its constitutional order, alleging coordinated activity by groups linked to the United States and several European countries. The claim was reported by Russian state media and comes amid continued geopolitical strain between Moscow and Western governments.
In a public statement, the SVR asserted that organizations in the U.S., Britain, Germany, Poland, and other European states are once again mobilizing resources to provoke unrest in Belarus, a close ally of Russia. The agency characterized the alleged effort as a renewed attempt at a so-called “color revolution,” though it said it does not expect such a campaign to succeed.
“NGOs in Western nations, including ‘democratizing’ structures, agencies and foundations in the U.S. as well as Britain, Germany, Poland and other European nations are building up assets to again attempt to destabilize the situation and change the constitutional order in Belarus,” the statement said.
According to the SVR, public support for opposition movements inside Belarus has significantly weakened since the large-scale protests that followed the country’s 2020 presidential election. The agency said citizens did not ultimately rally behind opposition activists who were prominent during that period and argued that those figures no longer exert meaningful political influence inside the country.
The intelligence service specifically pointed to opposition leader Svetlana Tikhanovskaya and other activists now residing in Lithuania and Poland, stating they “have demonstrated in the past years an absolute inability to influence political processes in their home nation in any way.”
The SVR further claimed that Belarusian society has taken note of what it described as the destabilizing outcomes of similar uprisings elsewhere in Eastern Europe. It cited “the examples of Ukraine, Moldova and other nations destroyed in the name of Western geopolitical ambitions under slogans calling for the protection of democracy and human rights,” framing those experiences as a deterrent to renewed unrest.
State media also detailed the broader diplomatic backdrop, noting what it described as a recent thaw in relations between Minsk and Washington following the return of President Donald Trump to office. According to the report, the U.S. government has in recent months secured the release of dozens of Belarusian activists imprisoned for their roles in the 2020 protests, a development previously reported alongside indications of sanctions relief.
“The warning follows a thaw in the relationship between the Lukashenko government and the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump,” the report said. It added that those released included Sergey Tikhanovsky, the husband of Tikhanovskaya, who had been barred from running in the 2020 election and later jailed on charges related to inciting unrest. Since his release, Tikhanovsky has issued video messages urging supporters to increase financial backing for the opposition, according to the report.
The latest allegations echo similar claims made by the SVR in recent years. In September 2025, the agency claimed Western governments were preparing a Ukraine-style uprising in Serbia, and in September 2024 it alleged the United States was planning a comparable operation in Georgia. Neither of those scenarios ultimately occurred.
Belarus continues to play a significant role in the broader Russia-Ukraine conflict. In September 2025, Belarus and Russia conducted joint military exercises, underscoring their close security cooperation. A year earlier, Belarusian President Aleksandr Lukashenko confirmed that his country had taken possession of Russian nuclear weapons.
“I had nuclear warheads deployed here. More than a dozen of them. Many people dismiss it as a joke, saying that ‘nobody brought anything’. We did. The fact that they [opponents] say it’s a joke means they’ve missed it. They haven’t even noticed how we brought them here,” Lukashenko said.
During the same remarks, Lukashenko issued a warning against any attempted incursion into Belarusian territory. “Using nuclear weapons is a big responsibility. Nobody has pressed the red button after Hiroshima and Nagasaki [the U.S. nuclear bombing of the Japanese cities in 1945],” he said. “But I have warned all enemies, ‘friends’ and rivals: if you step on the state border line, the response will be instantaneous. I will not look at nuclear weapons or anything else.”
Original article
Comments