Russia is allegedly planning to annex Belarus and absorb it into the Russian Federation by the year 2030, according to leaked presidential documents.
The secret dossier, reportedly dated to the summer of 2021, was entitled ‘Strategic Goals of the Russian Federation in Belarus’ and set out three possible approaches – short, medium and long-term – to annexing Belarus and restoring a piece of ‘historical Russia’.
The medium-term plan would see Belarus formally become part of Russia as early as 2025, while the long-term plan gives a time frame of seven years from 2023.
The plans were reportedly drawn up by Russia’s Presidential Directorate for Cross-Border Cooperation – a governmental division established by Putin in 2018 – and were obtained by Yahoo! News and German outlet Sueddeutsche Zeitung.
If the documents are verified as authentic, it would confirm that Vladimir Putin has ordered Russia’s intelligence services and armed forces to prepare to annex yet another country.
