About The Taliban In Slutsk

No, this isn't a dream I'm having with a fever of 39 degrees—this is Belarus today.

The photos published by Belarusian state propaganda shocked even the most seasoned observers. Taliban representatives listen with barely concealed disgust to a Belarusian woman (who is addressing the men with her head uncovered), as she extols the virtues of domestic food products.

No, this isn’t a feverish dream at 39 degrees—this is Belarus today. The authorities and propagandists are presenting the arrival of representatives of the terrorist “Taliban” as the world’s submission to Belarusian quality.

One thing we can definitely agree on is that this marks a qualitatively new level of escalation in the postmodern reality our country has been living in for the past seven years.

Anyone who remembers the ’90s and 2000s even a little bit automatically files names like “Al-Qaeda,” “Taliban,” “Boko Haram,” and the like into the “terrorism” box. It has always been this way, and this has been confirmed by numerous international conferences, treaties, agreements, and military operations aimed at combating global terrorism.

Where did we go wrong on this path, if the Taliban—who seized power in the country, torture and kill civilians, and oppress all the women in the country—have become respected international partners?

I am certain that such a “partnership” comes as a shock not only to opponents but also to supporters of the current government, because despite all the bloodthirstiness and aggression of the Yabateks, even they understand that the Taliban are now completely out of bounds, and that friendship with them promises nothing good.

However, the party’s current line is so erratic that it contradicts itself. The most striking example is a close examination of the list of terrorists compiled by the KGB, which includes not only Belarusian civil society activists but also (oh, wonder of wonders!) actual terrorists.

This list includes Sher Mohammad Abbas Stanikzai—Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs in the Taliban government. Being on the list of terrorists did not prevent the Taliban official from meeting with his Belarusian counterpart, Sergei Lukashevich, in Kabul to discuss cooperation between Belarus and Afghanistan.

As in many other cases, the principle formulated by the head of the Minsk regime—“sometimes the law doesn’t apply”—is at work here. Of course, all terrorists are equal before the law, but some are more equal than others—and, as we can see, the law is an optional thing that can be turned off with the flick of a switch.

Overall, the shocking photos of the Taliban in Slutsk remind us once again that the Lukashenko regime is putting on a brave face despite its poor performance. Despite all its efforts to return to the civilized world as a full-fledged participant in international relations, the Minsk regime is forced to present as a foreign policy breakthrough the visit of religious fanatics and fundamentalists who terrorize and torture their own people, force their opponents to flee the country, and have destroyed civil society, the academic community, and independent media.

Although, if you reread the last sentence, it turns out that the Lukashenko regime and the “Taliban” have quite a lot in common.

Sergey Kovalchuk, “Solidarity”

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