Anna Krasulina was born in Russia. In the early 2000s, after the philological faculty of Moscow State University, she completed her postgraduate studies at the Faculty of Public Administration of Moscow State University. But she failed to defend her thesis on the topic “Micropolitics in a business organization on the example of the government of the Russian Federation”. According to Krasulina, already in 2001, she came to the conclusion that “corruption is a system-forming factor in public administration.”

After that, Anna left for Minsk to stay with her husband. In 2019 she received the citizenship of the Republic of Belarus. “This is absolutely my country, my children and my husband are Belarusians, they speak Belarusian, like me, despite the fact that they did not take a single lesson of this language. But it is not difficult to learn it if you really want to, ”she said in an interview with a correspondent for the Russian service of the Voice of America.

In 2018, the Belarusian authorities tried to expel Anna Krasulina from the country, explaining that she is an activist of the opposition United Civil Party, where she was also a press secretary.

However, the organized criminal group appealed to human rights organizations, both in Belarus itself and abroad, to intercede for Krasulina. Thanks to this support, Anna managed to win the appeal and stay in the country.

“True, then I still had to leave Belarus, but during this time I managed to do a lot,” she added.

Anna Krasulina currently lives in Vilnius, so she is a correspondent for the Russian service of the Voice of America.

Anna Krasulina: Those who left after the events of 2010 (protests against the official results of the presidential elections – A.P.) are here. That is, they also left for political reasons.

Why did these people choose Lithuania? Because Vilnius is closer to Minsk than any of the regional centers of Belarus. Here one can not only wait for our victory, in order to try to bring it closer by working with the European politicians who are here. They are seriously included in our agenda due to common and cultural roots. It’s easy enough for us in Lithuania.

A. P.: How and how fruitfully is the connection with the Belarusian diasporas in other countries, including Latvia, Poland, Czech Republic, Germany ensured?

A.K.: Communication not only with European, but with all diasporas of the world, including Brazil, Japan, USA, Canada – where there are very active diasporas, and so on. So the connections are very active. Here, literally last weekend, a large conference of diasporas from all over the world was held. There is a chat room that calls up every week, coordination between different diasporas has been established, and we are constantly working to improve connections and communications in order to be “on the same wavelength.” of fair presidential elections, of course, the current regime must leave, and the people must decide for the first time how we will rebuild the country.

AP: How effective, in your opinion, are the EU and US sanctions against the Lukashenka regime?

A.K.: Quite a lot of sanctions were imposed in different years, for example, after the events of 2010 there were sanctions.

In general, sanctions are an attempt by civilized countries to put regimes that systemically violate human rights within the established framework. That is, it is a response to the illegal and anti-human actions of the authoritarian regime. Sanctions are not the answer to our requests, nor the decision of the countries themselves.

And they are effective. Their task is to limit the flow of resources into Lukashenka’s pocket, from which he pays for the mercenaries. Now there is an occupation administration in Belarus, power has been seized by one person who lost the elections and does not want to leave. And he retains his power only with the help of funds that occur due to the fact that he pays out of his own pocket with his big money.

National interests are not important to this occupation administration.

And if there is no money and external receipts to pay for the mercenaries, then soon enough these mercenaries will spread to another type of activity – they will begin to loot, rob other people, and so on. This is how it usually happens.

Under normal conditions, if this is, say, the occupation administration of the Third Reich on the territory of Belarus, it is paid from the Reich. Of course, at the same time, the local population is being robbed according to the principle: “grandma, give me hammers, eggs”, but without outside support, such a regime will not last long. Lukashenka used to have such support – he drove potash fertilizers abroad and received money in his pocket to pay for the mercenaries. Now this situation is worse precisely due to the sanctions. True, now the forest is being sold to the right and to the left, and terrible felling is taking place in the country. That is, the regime behaves like a typical occupation administration – the sale of forests, mineral resources, all countries in order to fill their pockets and escape, and for someone to get money to hold on to power.

Therefore, sanctions are exactly what will ensure the departure of this regime. And they are quite effective, we can judge this by the situation in Soligorsk, where Belaruskali is located. There are serious advances: there is nowhere to sell products, and as far as I know, there is a question about the suspension of salary payments. The people are in very great tension, the city is in a pre-crisis state, and for them it is very painful, because Soligorsk is one of the richest cities in Belarus due to the income from mines.

And we see that from an economic point of view, things are already going badly. Secondly, we see how Lukashenka and his entourage scream hysterically in their propaganda media. And the fact that the call for sanctions in Belarus has now been equated with extremism suggests that we are clearly hitting the target.

In addition, sanctions have been introduced against the so-called “regime wallets.” Lukashenka has circle persons on whom this or that business is registered, and through whose accounts he receives money. And since now, with the fourth or fifth attempt, almost all of them have succeeded there (sanctions lists) link, they are, relatively speaking, a regime, but not at all for the sake of Lukashenka himself. There is no ideology, no love, but only the interest to fill their own pockets.

And when these people fall under such sanctions, of course, Lukashenka rewrites the business on others, but they say: “So, wait a minute, I don’t understand something …”

And this is great, because on their part, “friendship with the regime” is built on schemes for receiving money, and on his (Lukashenka’s) side – the same thing. And when they sit down opposite each other and say that people who are forced to leave business have information that is dangerous for the regime.

On this basis, internal processes begin to unfold, which in any case lead to a complete fiasco and final collapse. And, possibly, with tragic consequences for all participants of the so-called “upper layer”. Therefore, I think that every day they re-evaluate this situation. And the process is unidirectional – they have less money in their pockets, and they have more and more problems – both with money and the fact that they are better than you and I have the entire degree of this person’s isolation from reality.

And I am sure that with the constant pumping of growing problems and economic interests onto the scales, at some point the problems will outweigh. And if Lukashenka had serious analysts, he believes that they would have already advised him to wind up, because it is impossible to predict how unpleasantly it will end for him – this may not be fair and the peaceful court of the Belarusian people and not The Hague, but Ceausescu’s option , or even Gaddafi. And here even we may not have time to save him for a fair trial. Of course, I would like to see him in the dock, so that it would be an analogue of the Nuremberg trials, so that he himself recalls all his actions. Because everything that he has done since the late 90s, when sudden deaths of opposition politicians were recorded, and others simply disappear – this must be done before a fair trial.

A. P.: What can the Belarusian opposition in foreign countries deliver to the intensification of repressions in Belarus itself?

A.K.: The more events accelerate and the higher the escalation of violence, the faster the end will come. And, of course, I really do not want to get into a batch of events at this stage. nature, he is the past, and that the future is coming.

And in this situation, the fewer victims, the less responsibility. Of course, for everything that has been done, responsibility will have to be borne, but one thing – before a civilized European court, and completely different – an uncontrolled war against violence, murder and everything that can happen, God forbid!

It is necessary to convey that it is very stupid to bet on Lukashenka now, and I think that these “wallets” simply rely on the fact that they will be able to evade responsibility. And here all the diasporas must clearly say: “Guys, we control not only Belarus, and diasporas exist not only in European countries, but also in Turkey, and in Russia, and in the Arab Emirates, and in general everywhere. And by our life’s work we will raise the question of the responsibility of those who will lead to the outbreak of war in the country. And we will not let them shirk responsibility. As Nazi criminals could not feel in Argentina in 50 years, so here. Thus, as long as there is an opportunity, to report the achievement of the goal from under a direct blow and to withdraw your relatives from under it, because if a civil war breaks out, then it will hook everyone – both children and those who are not to blame for anything. … So you need to stop. ”

We have talked about this many times, but we never tire of repeating that the more Lukashenka’s entourage and the security forces take responsibility for the violence on their shoulders, the less chances there are to save the innocent. And the diasporas are the personification of the fact that now the whole world is one, there are global information resources, global tracking systems, and no one will be able to escape responsibility. And if someone expects to hide on some distant small island, having changed their appearance and surrounded by guards, then this is the same prison! And is it worth condemning yourself to live in such a prison when your own children curse you.

And I believe that it is much more positive to surrender, to serve a positive term in court, and, after getting out of prison, as your children and grandchildren grow up. Instead of hiding somewhere with a suitcase of money. Because, I repeat: the global nature of the world guarantees the inevitability of punishment for what you have done. And everyone will answer for his own, but now we are talking about the future of generations.