EPISODE SUMMARY
Germany plays a key role in the West's policy towards Ukraine and Belarus. Despite its influence, Berlin is only one player. And Russia is at the heart of the network of connections in this region, including economic ones.

EPISODE NOTES
The events in Belarus were met with a relatively large response in Germany. Nevertheless, the successive waves of the COVID-19 pandemic have pushed the protests further down the agenda of European politics. This is proven by the ambiguously assessed sanctions against the Lukashenka regime. The situation is complicated by extensive economic ties. Here, the Belarusian opposition often overestimates the influence of Germany on the course of events, especially on Russia.
The European Union, including Germany, is concerned about the destabilization of Belarus and a repeat of Ukraine. Berlin follows the events in Kyiv and supports President Zelensky's reform efforts. Germany is interested in a peaceful end to the conflict in eastern Ukraine, but has no illusions that Kyiv and Moscow are fundamentally different about the future of Donbas.

SHOW CONTRIBUTORS
Paweł Usow
Jarosław Kociszewski
Michał Żakowski
Susan Stewart
Nilsa Schmidt
Adam Reichardt
John Beauchamp

Listen to this podcast in Polish here: https://nowa-europa-wschodnia.simplecast.com/episodes/niemcy-ukraina-bialorus