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Originally Posted by JD
Well sure but like Snuffleupagus points out, Putin's methods seem to normally be a bit more subtle.
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Daytime assassinations or attempts in other countries like Litvinenko and the Skripals? The jailing and mistreatment of Navalny?
There's nothing subtle about anything Putin does. There's plausible deniability. The same he gets here. Shrugs his shoulders and says "we didn't help or say it was okay *wink wink* but we're here for you Belarus."
But I doubt Belarus decides it's okay to go against Europe and the west without double checking with the hand that feeds them.
And of course Russia wants this. The more isolated Belarus is from Europe, the more they are beholden to Russia. The less stable the borders are. It's what they've been doing for years.