Belarus Official's Death Stokes Kremlin-Centric Conspiracy Theories
As with much of Russian history under Vladimir Putin, when things start going awry for the Kremlin, there is often a great deal of collateral damage that comes along with it.
After all, this is the government that like to poison the people who criticize it, and it’s the country that will give you a lengthy stay at a Siberian labor camp for protesting against its leadership.
In other words, when things get messy at the Kremlin, things gets messy wherever Putin’s tentacles reach.
That’s why a mysterious death in Belarus this week has conspiracy theories abound.
Belarus’ long-serving foreign minister Vladimir Makei died “suddenly” yesterday at the age of 64. The abrupt death of Mr Makei has raised eyebrows inside both Belarus and Russia, with one former colleague hinting at the possible involvement of Russian intelligence services. Mr Makei had been described as “healthy,” sparking several theories of outside involvement in his death.
This comes amid reports on Russian Telegram channels that Mr Makei, who had been in post since 2012, had been involved in possible peace talks with Ukraine.
Those close to the situation were already expressing some suspicions.
Former Belarus diplomat Pavel Latushka told NEXTA that Mr Makei “knew too much” about Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko.
He said: “Makei knew more about Lukashenko than any other person in the country. He knew who visited him, with whom Lukashenko could drink – a large amount of information.
“There are many mysterious circumstances.”
And also:
Mr Latushka said the timing was suspect, given that Mr Makei was about to visit Poland to take part in the OSCE Ministerial Council next week in Poland.
Advertisement - story continues belowHe cryptically said that Mr Makei “may have wanted to bring something important with him” during his trip to meet with European ministers.
Belarus, which has long been considered to be some form of Russian “puppet state”, has long supported the war in Ukraine, with earlier reports even suggesting that the Belarusian army was preparing to deploy in Ukraine to bolster Moscow’s forces.