This was stated by journalist Vitaliy Portnikov during an interview on Espreso."The 2020 protests in Belarus were a trap that Putin set for Lukashenko. We must recognize a very simple fact that many Belarusians are unwilling to accept. The protests in Belarus were a stage in the preparation for an attack on Ukraine and changing its leadership. This decision was already made in 2020. Volodymyr Zelenskyy was perceived as a figure who did not meet the Kremlin’s expectations and did not capitulate. Therefore, the decision was made to overthrow him. However, to do this, it was necessary to secure Belarusian territory in order to advance towards Kyiv. That was it," explained Portnikov.The journalist emphasized that in 2020, the Russians did not anticipate that the hatred of Belarusians towards Lukashenko would be so great and that they would have to exert more effort to stabilize the situation in Belarus."The only thing the Russians did not anticipate was the hatred of Belarusians for Lukashenko and that they would have to put in much greater efforts to normalize the situation. Much more effort than they had anticipated. However, I want to remind you that by 2020, the Belarusian political scene had been completely cleared of national-democratic candidates. Now, the people who participated in the presidential elections at that time are seen as part of the Belarusian sovereign opposition. Back then, these were people who spoke about the importance of good relations with Russia, and each of them was trying to continue Lukashenko's policies, which were absolutely dangerous for the Belarusian people, without him," he added.First consequence of the meeting between U.S. Special Representative Donald Trump’s former general, now diplomat Keith Kellogg, and Belarusian dictator Alexander Lukashenko was the release of opposition politician Sergey Tikhanovsky, who was arrested during the 2020 election campaign at the stage of collecting signatures for registration as a presidential candidate.Overall, Lukashenko released 14 political prisoners on Saturday, June 21, 2025.