Editor’s Note: This feature separates Ukraine’s friends from its enemies. The Order of Yaroslav the Wise has been given since 1995 for distinguished service to the nation. It is named after the Kyivan Rus leader from 1019-1054, when the medieval empire reached its zenith. The Order of Lenin was the highest decoration bestowed by the Soviet Union, whose demise Russian President Vladimir Putin mourns. It is named after Vladimir Lenin, whose corpse still rots on the Kremlin’s Red Square, more than 100 years after the October Revolution he led.
Ukraine’s Friend of the Week — Kristina Timanovskaya, Belarusian Olympic sprinter
In George Orwell’s novel 1984, the so-called thought criminals – those who oppose the regime – were “vaporized.” They simply disappeared and their existence was denied.
Belarusian authorities are known for their Orwellian approaches but there are those who dared to stand against them.
Kristina Timanovskaya, a 24-year-old Belarus sprinter, made the headlines after she criticized Belarusian authorities at the 2020 Tokyo Summer Olympics now underway.
Timanovskaya, whose specialty is the 200-meter dash, complained that after failing to submit enough anti-doping tests on other athletes, Belarusian coaches registered her for the longer race that Timanovskaya wasn’t trained for.
On July 30, Timanovskaya publicly complained that coaches made this decision without her knowledge. She later deleted the post but it was enough for the Belarusian delegation at the Olympics to threaten Timanovskaya and forcibly try to send her home.
“You come home, you don’t write anything anywhere, and you don’t make any statements,” said the head coach of the Belarusian national team Yuri Moisevich in the audio recording published on YouTube that allegedly captures his exchange with Timanovskaya.
Timanovskaya refused to go, worrying that Belarus was no longer safe for her. Trying to find a haven, she asked for a shelter in Poland and currently stays in Warsaw.
“I love Belarus! I hate Lukashenko’s regime…This system left no choice for me,” she wrote on Twitter on Aug. 5.
Timanovskaya’s husband and child left Belarus on Aug. 2 and found shelter in Kyiv.
In the Belarusian totalitarian regime, it is hard to be an outspoken rebel – authorities can always find a reason to “vaporize” you. It discourages young talents from staying in Belarus.
During the 2020 nationwide protests against Lukashenko, when law enforcers blocked the internet and raided firms belonging to those who were against the regime, dozens of local technology companies moved abroad. Over 40 tech companies found refuge in Ukraine.
Although there are many Belarusians who are not afraid to speak up, there are also those who surrender and become absorbed by the regime.
“I want other athletes to stop being afraid,” Timanovskaya said. “Bosses have to respect us.”
So Timanovskaya is our country’s friend of the week — for leading by example.
Ukraine’s Foe of the Week: Ivan Tertel, chairman of the State Security Committee (KGB) of Belarus
Belarusian authorities claim that the leadership of Ukraine chose to confront Belarus, “despite fraternal relations between the nations.”
In a documentary series “Belarus against the color revolution” released on Aug. 4, the country’s chairman of the State Security Committee (KGB) Ivan Tertel said that Ukraine was among the countries responsible for the nationwide protests against Belarusian dictator Aleksandr Lukashenko that erupted in August 2020.
According to Tertel, up to 70,000 people are involved in information attacks against Belarus aiming to “damage its regime.” These attacks, Tertel said, come from the U.S., Lithuania, Poland, the Czech Republic and Ukraine.
Tertel’s words echo Lukashenko’s statement on Aug. 5, when he called Ukraine an “additional threat” to Belarus.
Lukashenko and his regime used to see Ukraine as an alley. Lukashenko supported Ukraine’s ex-President Viktor Yanukovych during the 2014 EuroMaidan Revolution that ousted pro-Kremlin politicians from power.
“I still think that you had a coup d’etat then. It was illegal,” Lukashenko said.
Although Ukraine is still a key trading partner for Belarus and hasn’t imposed any sanctions that would hurt the Belarusian economy, it tries to distance itself from the totalitarian regime politically.
Along with the U.S. and Europe, Ukraine condemned the government of Belarus when Lukashenko rigged the country’s presidential election and suppressed pro-democratic protests.
Later, Ukraine banned air traffic with Belarus, even though its state airline Belavia was the third biggest carrier in Ukraine.
The country also banned many Belarusian officials from entering Ukraine, while encouraging Belarus-based tech companies to relocate to the country.
After Belarusian activist Vitaliy Shyshov was found hanged in a park in Kyiv, where he stayed since fleeing Belarus in 2020, President Volodymyr Zelensky ordered that the law enforcers provide protection to all Belarusians who arrived in Ukraine during the last year and who may be under threat for their activism.
So Belarusian Tertel is Ukraine’s foe of this week for believing that “fraternal relations” between the countries could become an excuse for Ukraine to support Europe’s last dictatorship.
