Disinfo: The Globalists target Karabakh in order to suffocate Russia

This is a conspiracy consistent with a recurring pro-Kremlin disinformation narrative about aggressive West aiming to harm Belarus by any means. It groundlessly speaks about the Western pressure on Belarusian businesses and wrongly interprets EU sanctions. In early October 2020, the EU imposed restrictive measures against 40 individuals responsible for repression and intimidation against peaceful demonstrators, opposition members, and journalists in the wake of the 2020 presidential election in Belarus, as well as for misconduct of the electoral process. However, EU sanctions do not extend to any state or private business. The allegation that the outflow of IT businesses was programmed by the EU which was aware of the upcoming non-recognition of election makes no sense. Numerous gross violations were well-documented by specialised NGOs based on accounts of independent observers and journalists. The EU did not recognise a number of previous presidential and parliamentary elections as free and fair based on ODIHR OSCE observation mission conclusions. However, never before the post-electoral situation resulted in such a massive relocation of IT businesses. This is because the relocation results not from non-recognition of presidential results by the Western countries or imposition of personal sanctions by them, but from the breakdown of law in Belarus, unprecedented repressive actions of the Belarusian state authorities, and occasional internet shutdowns during protest rallies. Asked about negative factors for their activities in a recent survey, Belarusian startup companies named the absence of legal protection and dysfunctional legislation (56%), violence and killings of peaceful citizens (56%), a loss of trust towards state authorities, and political crisis (47%), criminal cases against employees of startup companies (47%), and cases when law enforcement agencies can break into the offices, arrest employees and seize equipment without legal grounds (45%). According to human rights advocates, around 15,000 people have been detained in Belarus since the election, and over 100 of them were declared political prisoners. By September 2020 UN human rights experts received reports of 450 documented cases of torture and ill-treatment of people deprived of their liberty after the disputed presidential election and called on Belarus to stop torturing detainees. Read earlier disinformation cases alleging that CIA and Pentagon prepare Belarusian protestors in Poland, Ukraine, and the Baltic states, that hostile actions of Poland towards Belarus a smokescreen for Poland’s real goals, and that the United States organised the protests in Belarus.

This publication misinterprets Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya's initiative regarding the Belarusian migrants in Poland. It fits into the disinformation narrative about Tsikhanouskaya as a Western puppet which purposefully inflicts harm on the Belarusian people and state. Her request to the Polish government is linked to a rather limited group of Belarusian migrants who come to Poland on humanitarian visas and cannot be viewed as an attempt to organise a massive emigration of highly-qualified specialists from Belarus. Humanitarian visas are issued by Polish consulates to Belarusians who need to temporarily leave Belarus due to the state repressions, independently of their professional qualification. It is reported that between 18 August and 18 October 2020, 399 Belarusians arrived in Poland on humanitarian visas. The current Polish legislation does not allow holders of humanitarian visas to undertake work activities in Poland which creates difficulties for this category of migrants. Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya asked to amend the legislation accordingly. As for the emigration of highly-qualified specialists, this trend is indeed observed in Belarus. However, as the results of a recent survey show, the relocation of Belarusian IT companies to Poland and other countries stems from the breakdown of law, repressive actions of the state authorities and occasional internet shutdowns rather than Tsikahnouskaya's negotiations with Polish politicians. Asked about negative factors for their activities in a recent survey, Belarusian startup companies named the absence of legal protection and dysfunctional legislation (56%), violence and killings of peaceful citizens (56%), a loss of trust towards state authorities and political crisis (47%), criminal cases against employees of startup companies (47%), and cases when law enforcement agencies can break into the offices, arrest employees and seize equipment without legal grounds (45%). See earlier disinformation narratives alleging that Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya’s trip to Germany shows that Merkel is her handler, that Poland and Lithuania directly sponsor open extremist actions against Belarus, and that imperialistic Poland and Lithuania are the springboards for Belarusian Maidan.