“We discussed it in 2022; at the time it was treated as some political game: don’t push him completely into Russia [‘s arms], so he doesn’t allow [Russian] troops to move through Belarus,” the unnamed official told the BIC.
“Andriy Borysovych [Yermak] was always against sanctions on Belarus. Now, I don’t think anyone openly holds that position.”
The BIC said its journalist sent inquiries in late January 2026 to the President’s Office, the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU), and the National Bank of Ukraine (NBU) asking, “Why did they not initiate sanctions against Alexander Lukashenko?”
The President’s Office did not respond to the query. The NBU replied only once the sanctions were finally announced, and the SBU declined to comment, citing national security concerns.
President Volodymyr Zelenskyy announced the sanctions in a video message to Ukrainians on Feb. 18, saying they were a response to what he called Belarus’ deepening involvement in the Russo–Ukrainian war.
“Lukashenko has been trading away the sovereignty of his state to stay in power and has given up many Belarusian interests to the Russians,” Zelenskyy said.
“Russia even brought a full-scale war into Ukraine, in part
from Belarusian territory. Since last autumn, Ukraine has detected radio relays
on Belarusian territory that facilitate Russian drone strikes.”