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Belarus’ Dramatic Pivot On Poland Points To A Deepening Rift With Russia

By Editor on 26th January 2026 • ( 0 )

Belarus’ Dramatic Pivot On Poland Points To A Deepening Rift With Russia

This is arguably the result of growing US influence over Belarus throughout the course of their talks.

Russia and Belarus coordinate military policy through the CSTO, thus contextualizing why Russia transferred Oreshniks and tactical nukes to Belarus, and are supposed to coordinate foreign policy through their Union State. The second duty isn’t being perfectly fulfilled by Belarus right now, however, as evidenced by its Foreign Minister’s radically changed perception of Poland that directly contradicts Russia’s. Maxim Ryzhenkov shared his country’s new views in an interview with publicly financed BelTA.

In his words, “To be honest, I most of all expect that cooperation will be restored most quickly with Poland. This is a country that sees itself as a genuine regional leader and does everything to achieve that, pursuing a pragmatic policy which does not allow for any room for error. Cooperation with our self-exiled opposition is a dead end for them. I believe that they will come to realize this, put an end to this story, and start building cooperation in the interests of the people on both sides of the border”.

Belarus’ radically changed perception of Poland as a “genuine regional leader…pursuing a pragmatic policy which does not allow for any room for error” directly contradicts Russia’s perception of it as a joint UK–US vassal which practices irresponsible and erroneous policies that have destabilized the region. One year ago, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko declared that “Poland pursues the most aggressive and bad policy against Belarus”, yet he obviously no longer thinks so after talks with Trump 2.0:

* 23 June 2025: “Does The US Want To Divide-And-Rule Belarus & Russia Or De-Escalate Continental Tensions?”

* 19 October 2025: “The West Wants Belarus To Replace Supposed Russian Vassalage With Actual Polish Vassalage”

* 5 November 2025: “How Likely Is It That Poland Gives Belarus A Fair Deal Instead Of A Lopsided One?”

Per the last analysis, Lukashenko announced back then that he’s ready for a “big deal” with the US so long as Belarus’ interests are taken into account, which KGB chief Ivan Tertel seconded by telling reporters that “We have every chance of achieving a breakthrough in relations with the United States.” This can only occur if Polish threats to Belarus are reduced, however, perhaps by a deal limiting Poland’s hosting of foreign troops in exchange for Belarus giving back some of its Oreshniks and/or tactical nukes.

The verdict is still out about whether the US is coordinating this with Russia as part of a “New Détente”, wants to provoke differences between it and Belarus through these means, and/or if it’s plotting to lull Belarus into a false sense of security prior to unleashing another round of instability. In any case, it’s notable that Poland and its Eastern Flank allies pledged to accelerate their militarization during their NATO subgroup’s inaugural summit last December, which tangibly threatens Belarus’ national security.

That’s why it was so surprising that Belarus soon thereafter shared a radically changed perception of Poland that directly contradicts its Russian ally’s. This disturbingly hints at an emerging foreign policy divergence that risks widening in ways that facilitate the US’ divide-and-rule plans at both of their expense, especially if it presages a complementary divergence in military policy that could then lead to a crisis in bilateral ties. It’s therefore urgent that they return to being on the same page about Poland.

Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are author’s own and do not necessarily reflect the editorial policy of Voice of East.