Lukashenka Gets Hooked On Oligarch-Ill-Wisher

Now we know why the Blue-Fingered complains to Putin all the time.

The ruler of Belarus turned against Minsk native, one of the richest people in Russia, Dmitry Mazepin, writes Solidarity. Why so?

Lukashenka complains to the Kremlin

In a recent interview with propagandist Vladimir Solovyov, Aliaksandr Lukashenka said that he had prepared a document for Vladimir Putin on the financing of the Belarusian opposition by Russian businessmen.

“Moreover, they come to the reception of the President of Russia, who is clearly my dear person,” the ruler of Belarus expressed his indignation.

Considering the context, he is obviously making digs at Dmitry Mazepin, the owner of the Uralkhim company, which owns Uralkali in turn. A few weeks before the Solovyov interview, Mazepin had just met with the President of Russia.

It is also worth remembering that Belarusian state propaganda openly attacked Mazepin last summer. Then, in an interview with ONT, Raman Pratasevich said that the well-known Telegram channel where he used to work was partially funded by one of the Russian companies. Pratasevich could not remember its name, but said that it “had something to do with the Urals and mining”.

— I decided to search on the internet. And I remember exactly that I came to the conclusion that the owner of this company is a well-known Russian oligarch. This person is a direct competitor of another well-known Russian businessman, Mikhail Gutseriev. These people work in the same area and are competitors, — Pratasevich said.

Press Secretary of the President of the Russian Federation Dmitry Peskov, in response to the questions from journalists, said the following:

— Firstly, no one accused Mazepin. Pratasevich did not mention the name of Mazepin. Probably, it is he (Pratasevich) or the Belarusian side who should explain who he is talking about. It is hardly necessary to play cat-and-mouse here.

The Russian oligarch himself issued a refutation on the NTV channel. “Neither I nor my companies have ever funded this Telegram channel,” Mazepin said.

Why Lukashenka took up arms against Mazepin

Dmitry Mazepin was born in 1968 in Minsk, where his mother still lives. After finishing military service in Afghanistan in 1988, he settled in Moscow and is now a Russian citizen. According to Forbes, now his fortune is estimated at 800 million dollars.

Interestingly, Lukashenka and Mazepin know each other quite well. They met in person at least twice. In 2014, after the high-profile divorce of Belaruskali and Uralkali (Mazepin arrived in Minsk in the status of a new co-owner of the company) and in 2017. To all appearances, the negotiations failed twice – Belarus and Russia continued to trade potash separately.

But Lukashenka took up arms against Mazepin later. In August 2020, thenative of Minsk proposed to create a Committee for the Rescue of Belarus, and Lukashenka to sit down at the negotiating table.

— On behalf of the Russian and Belarusian business, we appeal to Lukashenka with a request to recognize the obvious facts of protest tension in society and, without wasting time, sit down at the table of peaceful detailed negotiations, which should result in finding a way out of the political instability. This opportunity may soon become the only one, so it should not be missed, — said the address of the Russian-Belarusian Business Council of August 13 (Mazepin is its chairman).

And further:

— The second call is to the Belarusian intelligentsia, businessmen, politicians: it is necessary to form a National Rescue Committee, which, on behalf of the population, will be able to talk with the authorities on an equal footing.

In November 2020, Mazepin said that the Russian-Belarusian Business Council could financially help Belarusian students expelled due to protests.

— We see that a huge number of students have recently been expelled from universities in Minsk. We want to launch an initiative and help expelled students so that they do not leave for Poland and Lithuania, but come to Moscow or St. Petersburg in order to be able to continue their education, — Mazepin said.

By today's standards of the Belarusian regime, this perfectly fits in the “financing the Belarusian opposition,” about which Lukashenka promised to tell Putin.

Once again, Mazepin demonstrated his attitude towards the Lukashenka regime in June 2021, when he denied his involvement in financing the well-known Telegram channel.

The businessman could not resist and teased Minsk, saying that he understood well the “authors of this political melodrama” who would like to show the Western plan to seize Belarus and at the same time once again show the Russian trace. Mazepin noted that the same people “already talked about the Wagnerites, Mike and Nick.”

How the Belarusian authorities are now dependent on Mazepin

Lukashenka has never hidden that he sees in Uralkali a dangerous competitor of Belaruskali. In September 2020, he stated:

— As soon as the information appeared that Belaruskali had allegedly gone on strike, Mazepin, Uralkali immediately renegotiated the contracts, and began supplying potash fertilizers to the markets.

Now, due to the sanctions against Belaruskali, the Belarusian authorities seemed to be in a difficult situation. After Lithuania's refusal to transport potassium through its territory, Minsk is urgently looking for alternative routes through Russia.

The catch is that the logistics infrastructure there is already loaded — for the needs of the same Uralkali. Vadzim Iasub, senior analyst at Alpari Eurasia, told Filin:

— There were statements that theoretically there is a possibility of transshipment of potassium, but there are no free capacities, since they are involved in the transshipment of Uralkali's fertilizers. Immediately there were ideas to build a new terminal there, but this is an investment in billions of dollars and the construction period is probably more than one year. Unless, of course, it will be of interest to someone.

In the same interview with Solovyov, Lukashenka said that in a year Belarus could start transshipment of potash fertilizers at a port terminal in Russia, built with the participation of domestic capital.

True, the new Russian ambassador to Belarus, Boris Gryzlov, then said that the Leningrad region would be ready to pick up Belarusian cargo from Klaipeda in the near future.

However, the price for resolving this issue is not reported, neither it is said what benefit Uralkali can get from this: it is unlikely that the Russian authorities are going to sacrifice its interests.

Thus, Lukashenka turned out to be dependent on an ill-wisher businessman: Mazepin’s actions, whether he wants to “make room”, now largely depends on what will happen to the export of Belaruskali.

Perhaps that is why the ruler of Belarus continues to attack the oligarch with accusations of involvement in the protests, hoping with the help of “dear person” Putin to make him more accommodating. If Mazepin talks about the economic interests of Uralkali, Minsk will see this as nothing more than a new political conspiracy of a businessman.