Natallia Radzina: Belarusian Independent Media Is A Weapon That Can Help Protect Ukraine And Europe

• 5.09.2025, 14:59

Freedom of speech is directly related to security.

This was stated by editor-in-chief of Charter97.org Natallia Radzina, speaking at a meeting of the European Parliament delegation for relations with Belarus. Hearings on the situation with freedom of speech in Belarus were held in Brussels on September 4 at the initiative of the head of the European Parliament delegation for relations with Belarus Małgorzata Gosiewska.

The event was attended by MEPs Mārtiņš Staķis, Michał Kobosko, Petras Auštrevičius, Mariusz Kamiński, Maciej Wąsik, representatives of the European Commission, the European External Action Service, experts and journalists. The situation of the Belarusian independent media was discussed by former political prisoner, journalist of Radio "Liberty" Ihar Karnei, editor-in-chief of the website "Charter'97" Natallia Radzina, director of Radio "Racyja" Yauhen Wapa, director of the TV channel "Belsat" Alina Koushyk, well-known Polish journalist and former director of Belsat Agnieszka Romaszewska-Guzy, representative of the Belarusian Association of Journalists Tatsiana Karavenkava and head of the Free Press for Eastern Europe Foundation Maryia Sadouskaya-Komlach.

The head of the website Charter97.org noted in her speech that freedom of speech is directly related to security.

"Belarus today is not only a dictatorship in which people have neither freedom nor any rights. Pro-Russian dictatorial regime of Lukashenko, who has ruled the country for 31 years, threatens today the security of neighboring countries - Ukraine, Lithuania, Latvia and Poland," said Natallia Radzina. - And this threat is not hypothetical, but absolutely real. In 2022, Russian troops attacked Ukraine from the territory of Belarus, and for many months there was a missile attack on Ukrainian settlements.

For more than three years of Russia's large-scale war against Ukraine, Russian soldiers and volunteers have been training on the territory of Belarus, Russia has been actively using Belarusian military infrastructure, training grounds and airfields for its purposes. The country's defense companies produce weapons for the Russian army, while Belarusian oil refineries produce fuel for Russian tanks.

In fact, Putin, with the help of his ally Lukashenko, has turned our country into a Kremlin military bridgehead. The upcoming Belarusian-Russian exercises "West-2025" in September clearly demonstrate Russia's intentions to attack Lithuania, Latvia, Poland in the future, including with use of tactical nuclear missiles, which can be deployed on the territory of Belarus.

For the security of the EU countries and Ukraine, it is necessary for Belarus to be freed from Russian influence and stop being a Kremlin military bridgehead. For this purpose, it is necessary to continue sanctions pressure on the authorities of the country and actively work with the population of Belarus. Independent media is the most effective tool for working with the Belarusians.

I assure you: the influence of independent media, which are forced to work in exile, on the Belarusians today is much greater than that of Lukashenko's propaganda channels. The majority of Belarusians continue to hate the dictator and do not believe his pocket media. I believe that it was the great work of the Belarusian independent media that was able to prevent the direct involvement of the Belarusian army in the war against Ukraine. It is the Belarusian independent media that today support national identity in Belarusians, the very identity that distinguishes Belarusians from Russians. It is the independent media that today tell people in the country the truth about the crimes of the regime and the war in neighboring Ukraine.

But today we do not have enough resources to counter Russian propaganda. The Kremlin spends billions of euros on its propaganda channels and information wars against Ukraine and Western countries. Support for Belarusian independent media, which are forced to work in exile, is only decreasing every year, and today many media outlets are on the verge of closure.

It is a huge mistake not to understand the importance of the work of Belarusian journalists. Since 2014, I and my colleagues have often traveled to Ukraine.

We told the Ukrainian authorities that Russia would certainly attack Ukraine from the north, from the territory of Belarus. In order to prevent this from happening, we proposed to actively work for democratization of the situation in the country, to support independent media and to broadcast independent radio stations and TV channels to Belarus. We were not heard, they thought it was too expensive, but the losses from a large-scale war turned out to be disproportionately large.

Recognize the threat before it is too late. If we stop working, Russian propaganda will deceive Belarusians and the Russian army may be replenished with hundreds of thousands of volunteers from Belarus, who will go with weapons to Ukraine, Lithuania, Latvia, Poland.

This mistake will cost the West very dearly. Calculate it for yourself: the necessary annual support of all Belarusian media, which have a large audience in Belarus, is equal to the cost of two tanks (let's say, Leopard-2). In case the Russian army attacks the EU countries or Ukraine from the territory of Belarus, these two tanks can be destroyed by relatively cheap drones in a matter of minutes, and the total losses from the war will be calculated not only in billions of euros, but also in priceless human lives.

The power of free speech cannot be underestimated. Russia understands it, which is why it is waging an all-out, hybrid war, with active use of media, propaganda, information sabotage and fakes. The West must confront it with all its might and in this confrontation Belarusian journalists are its reliable allies.

Belarusian independent media are a weapon that can help protect Ukraine and Europe.