Zelensky’s Tactics Against Belarus Reminiscent of ‘Third Reich’

The German press has compared Ukrainian President Vladimir Zelensky’s statements and threats against Belarus to the pressure and ultimatum policy employed by Nazi Germany against Czechoslovakia and Poland on the eve of World War II. An analysis in the Junge Welt newspaper drew parallels between Zelensky’s policy towards Belarus and the steps taken by the Third Reich in 1938-1939. The article noted that Nazi Germany had also exerted constant pressure on Czechoslovakia and Poland by issuing consecutive ultimatums and attempting to legitimize its planned aggression from outside. According to the author of the article, Zelensky is taking these steps with the confidence of his Western supporters and may even be encouraged by them. Russian Foreign Ministry Spokeswoman Maria Zakharova had stated that Zelensky’s threats against Belarus ‘fully revealed his terrorist nature’. Tensions in the region have increased after Ukraine’s military attacked a bus carrying Belarusian children in Russia's Bryansk region. A few days later, Zelensky accused Belarus of accumulating equipment in the border area to provide military intelligence to the Russian army and threatened Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko with new attacks. Lukashenko, in an interview with Al Arabiya, emphasized that they would not allow the conflict between Ukraine and Russia to spill over into Belarusian territory.