DISINFO: Protests in Belarus are coordinated by Western countries and the opposition wants bloodshed
SUMMARY
Ongoing protests in Belarus are coordinated from the West which wants to transform the country to meet its interests. The Belarusian opposition located in Western countries does not want the protests to be peaceful but rather seeks bloodshed. Tsikhanouskaya is now under pressure in Lithuania.
RESPONSE
Recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative about protests in Belarus. The European Union has not recognised the election because of widespread reports of vote-rigging. European Council President Charles Michel stated that “[t]he protests in Belarus are not about geopolitics. This is about the right of the People to freely elect their leadership”. The protests do not have a co-ordinator but are rather organised locally in reaction to current events. Svetlana Tikhanovskaya is now referred to as the opposition leader. She was the other presidential candidate who left for Lithuania after detention and pressure in Belarus and is now safe according to the Lithuanian Foreign Minister Linas Linkevicius. She has called for an end to the violence and for peaceful protests. She also urged the current Belarusian authorities to engage in a dialogue with the protesters to resolve the situation. See similar cases claiming that the actions of the protesters in Belarus are controlled by foreign centres, that the West is using the "colour revolutions" methodologies in Belarus or that USA, NATO and EU want to dictate a regime-change to the people of Belarus.