PREFACE
Whether we like it or not, 2025 was marked by Donald Trump. The 47th president of the United States caused the most significant shifts in international politics in recent decades. He has redefined the role in the global world not only of the U.S. itself, but also of European countries, and even of closed dictatorships such as Russia and Belarus, which depend more on the will of their leaders than on external influence.
With regard to Russia, Donald Trump, for example, managed to restore its hope, if not for victory, then at least for a dignified outcome in the bloody and unjust war it had unleashed against Ukraine. Help came at precisely the moment when everything seemed to be turning against Moscow: Europe was uniting, NATO was strengthening, and the Russian army was being repelled by Ukrainian defense forces. Trump not only resumed contacts with Vladimir Putin, but also restored his legitimacy to some extent: unlike the previous administration, the U.S. no longer called the Russian dictator an international war criminal. Trump flattered Putin, promised all sorts of concessions, put pressure on Ukraine and its president, and suspended financial and military aid to Ukraine, which only led to additional casualties and suffering for the Ukrainian people.
Of course, Russian and Belarusian propagandists were delighted with this. iSANS covered the statements of pro-government channels on this topic in sufficient detail. They discussed the U.S. president’s activities perhaps no less than those of their own “president.” Initially, it seemed that Trump had taken Russia’s side. However, the pendulum swung back again, aid to Ukraine resumed, new sanctions were imposed on Russia, and attitudes toward him changed accordingly.
This happened several times throughout the year.
A noticeable improvement in relations began in the summer and autumn of 2025, when the American side unexpectedly resumed contacts with Belarus. Trump called Lukashenka before meeting with Putin in Alaska, and then U.S. special envoys visited Minsk several times – first Keith Kellogg, then John Coale – who conveyed all kinds of praise and compliments from the US president to Lukashenka. As a result of the negotiations with Belarus, U.S. sanctions were partially lifted, and a large number of Belarusian political prisoners were released.
As a result, by the end of the year, Russian and Belarusian propagandists had largely lost interest in discussing Trump’s actions. Now, the attitude of pro-government media toward him can be described as detached and ironic. The main wish for the U.S. president is that he should, if possible, not interfere in further affairs with Ukraine and not criticize Russia and Belarus for human rights violations, but rather focus on Venezuela, Iran, and conflicts with Europe. Which is, in fact, what is happening now.
In this review, we tried to classify and summarize the most important lines of Belarusian propaganda at the end of 2025.
BELARUS
- 2025 was marked by Trump. Throughout the year, the actions of the American president were the focus of attention of Belarusian pro-government channels.
- In August, the U.S. administration resumed dialogue with the Belarusian authorities. Sanctions were partially lifted, and large groups of political prisoners were released. The attitude of the propaganda media toward the American president can be described as “” Enthusiasm is replaced by anger. Skeptics urge people not to trust Trump.
- The regime’s main efforts are still focused on preserving and supporting Lukashenka’s image as the sole leader. Among other things, visits by U.S. special envoys to Minsk are used as a reason to praise the “”
BELARUS’S DEMOCRATIC FORCES
- Propaganda’s efforts were aimed at denigrating and discrediting political prisoners who had been released.
- “Trend of the year”: State media employees and officials are increasingly participating in campaigns by the special services aimed at sowing seeds of universal suspicion and division among democratic forces abroad. Lukashenka himself often spreads narratives that benefit the KGB. One of the claims is that there are many “their people” among those who have left – agents and informants working for the KGB.
- Threats, including physical violence and reprisals, are used against the dissidents.
“THE COLLECTIVE WEST”
- In propaganda narratives, the West remains a “hostile alliance,” a source of evil and vice that threatens the stability of Belarus.
- Europe, primarily the countries on the eastern frontier of the European Union – Poland and the Baltic states – has taken the place of the main antagonist.
WAR IN UKRAINE
- Lukashenka personally participates in spreading anti-Ukrainian narratives that benefit the Kremlin. In October and December, he insisted that Volodymyr Zelenskyy needed to quickly negotiate peace with Putin because Ukraine was allegedly suffering defeats on the front lines.
- This supports one of the Kremlin’s main propaganda lines: that the West has unleashed a war against Russia in Ukraine.
The full quarterly analytical report on propaganda in Belarus for the 4th quarter of 2025 can be read or downloaded VIA THE LINK.
Материал доступен на русском языке: Под сенью Трампа. Основные нарративы беларусской пропаганды в последней четверти 2025 года
