The Putin-Lukashenko tango is likely to keep on going

By Dmitry Oreshkin Russian President Vladimir Putin’s public statements about the mass protests in Belarus have been at once forceful and ambiguous. For example, he says that a “law enforcement reserve” force has been prepared for potential engagement in Belarus. However, that could mean personnel ranging from traffic police and the units who break up demonstrations to the Russian Federal Security Service, the main successor to the Soviet-era KGB, and heavily armed military units like the Russian National Guard. What circumstances would prompt Russia to intervene? Putin says the “reserve” would “not be used until the situation starts getting out of control.” However, who decides that? If it...