Lithuania, land of asylum for Russian and Belarusian opponents

A march in Vilnus, March 1, 2015, in memory of Boris Nemtsov, main opponent of Vladimir Putin, shot dead not far from the Kremlin, February 27, 2015. PETRAS MALUKAS / AFP

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Belarusian opponent SvetlanaTikhanovskaïa took refuge in Lithuania on Tuesday. "She is safe," say the authorities of the host country. The Belarusian head of state's rival appears to have been pressured to throw in the towel. His arrival in Lithuania is in any case a surprise, the country regularly welcomes opponents.

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502 kilometers separate Belarus and Lithuania, a common border that nationals of both countries can only cross with a visa. However, the common past remains alive.

"  Lithuania has always had very close links with Belarus, historical links  ", explains Anna Colin-Lebedev, lecturer at the University of Paris Nanterre.

Except that recent history is much more complicated: construction of a Belarusian nuclear power station 40 km from Vilnius - "  an atomic monster at the gates of Lithuania  " says local media - management of the coronavirus ... So many reasons for strong tension in recent months.

But it has been 26 years since the strong man of Belarus came to power that the country has been a refuge for opponents of Alexander Lukashenko .

► To read also: Belarus: the opponent Svetlana Tikhanovskaïa refugee in Lithuania

“  When Lukashenko came to power, there was, for example, the City of Human Sciences in Minsk, which was established for ages. This is the classic rear for all Russian opponents of Lukashenko's power  , ”says the specialist in post-Soviet societies.

Lithuania also welcomes Russian dissidents and openly supports them. The square in front of the Russian Embassy in Vilnius was named Boris Nemtsov. He is a leader of the Russian opposition assassinated in 2015 in Moscow. An initiative of Russian dissidents on the spot supported by the Lithuanian Parliament.

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