Russia wants to turn Ukraine into 'dependent' like Belarus, wife of jailed Nobel laureate says - Yahoo News

By Gwladys Fouche

OSLO (Reuters) -Russia wants to crook Ukraine into a "dependent dictatorship" similar Belarus, the woman of jailed Belarusian Nobel Peace Prize laureate Ales Byalyatski said connected Saturday upon receiving the prize connected his behalf, speaking his words.

Byalyatski, Russian rights radical Memorial and Ukraine's Center for Civil Liberties won the 2022 Nobel Peace Prize successful October, amid the warfare successful Ukraine that followed Russia's penetration of its neighbour.

Receiving the grant connected behalf of her hubby astatine Oslo City Hall, Natallia Pinchuk said Byalyatski dedicated the prize to "millions of Belarusian citizens who stood up and took enactment successful the streets and online to support their civilian rights".

"It highlights the melodramatic concern and conflict for quality rights successful the country," she said, adding she was speaking her husband's words.

Pinchuk has met her hubby erstwhile since helium was named a Nobel Peace Prize laureate, successful prison, down a solid wall, she told a quality league connected Friday.

"I cognize precisely what benignant of Ukraine would suit Russia and Putin — a babelike dictatorship. The aforesaid arsenic today's Belarus, wherever the dependable of the oppressed radical is ignored and disregarded," Pinchuk said connected Saturday, quoting her husband.

Belarusian information constabulary detained Byalyatski, 60, and others successful July past twelvemonth successful a crackdown connected opponents of the country's president, Alexander Lukashenko.

Authorities had moved to unopen down non-state media outlets and quality close groups aft wide protests the erstwhile August against a statesmanlike predetermination that the absorption said was rigged.

Byalyatski is the 4th idiosyncratic to triumph the Nobel Peace Prize portion successful detention, aft Germany's Carl von Ossietzky successful 1935, China's Liu Xiaobo successful 2010 and Myanmar's Aung San Suu Kyi, who was nether location arrest, successful 1991.

The seat of the Norwegian Nobel Committee said during Saturday's ceremonial that the committee's "thoughts were with each prisoners of conscience successful Belarus".

"Most particularly, we deliberation of Ales Byalyatski successful his acheronian and isolated situation compartment successful Minsk," Berit Reiss-Andersen told the audience, which included King Harald and Queen Sonja.

"You are not alone. We basal with you."

The U.N. quality rights main said successful March that astir 1,100 activists, absorption members and journalists are being detained connected "politically motivated charges" successful Belarus and called for their release.

Belarus's delegation to the U.N. Human Rights Council successful Geneva dismissed the report, with its diplomat Andrei Taranda telling the forum: "It is filled with allegations and mendacious accusations".

Belarus and Russia are formally portion of a "union state" and are intimately allied economically and militarily. Lukashenko's dependence connected Moscow deepened aft Russia helped him quash the protests that followed the disputed 2020 election.

Russia utilized Belarus arsenic a staging station for its failed beforehand connected Kyiv, starting connected Feb. 24. Belarus has said it volition not participate the warfare successful Ukraine. Russia said connected Thursday its troops were taking portion successful tactical exercises successful Belarus, amid interest that Moscow is pressing its state to get much progressive successful the war.

(Reporting by Gwladys FoucheEditing by Frances Kerry)