A Belarusian opposition figure is calling for the European Union to create a new "Special Envoy for Belarus" — another diplomatic sinecure that will inevitably end up on the long list of European security commitments subsidized by American taxpayers.
Pavel Latushka, deputy head of the self-styled United Transitional Cabinet and head of its National Anti-Crisis Management, floated the proposal at the Poznań Economic Congress in Poland. According to Europe Says, Latushka told the panel the envoy should "represent the interests of Belarusian democratic forces in international negotiations" and carry "a strong mandate based on the EU's latest decisions."
Latushka's pitch is straightforward regime-change advocacy dressed in diplomatic language. He argued that Belarusian strongman Aliaksandr Lukashenka "does not represent Belarus" because he "was not lawfully elected president" and that the Belarusian people — who he says oppose Russia's war in Ukraine — should instead be represented at the negotiating table by "democratic forces, with the support of our partners." He listed those partners: "the EU, Poland, the United Kingdom, Ukraine and the United States."
There it is. The United States is always on the list — and always expected to write the check.
Latushka also revealed that his faction has drawn up "10 conditions that Lukashenka must meet if he wants to sit at the negotiating table," though he did not detail them. He noted that recent negotiations in Abu Dhabi touched on Belarus and the deployment of Russian nuclear weapons on its territory, and that Lukashenka now wants to be a party to negotiations rather than a mediator.
"Nothing about Belarusians without Belarusians," Latushka stressed — a fine slogan, but one that raises the question of who exactly elected Latushka's "United Transitional Cabinet" to speak for anyone.
The broader problem is familiar. Europe creates a new bureaucratic position, the position comes with a mandate that requires American diplomatic and military backing, and the American public is never asked whether it wants to underwrite yet another commitment on a continent that spends decades shortchanging its own defense. The EU has a sprawling diplomatic corps already. If Brussels wants a Belarus envoy, it can staff and fund one without looping Washington into the negotiations.
Latushka wants the seat at the table. Europe wants the appearance of action. The question for Americans is who pays — and for how long.
