The last European dictatorship

Donald Rayfield reviews Belarus: The Last European Dictatorship, by Andrew Wilson, and reaches the following conclusion:

Wilson concludes that Lukashenko cannot go on winning his perpetual game of poker: as his revenues from Russia's subsidies and transit fees shrink, his economy is threatened with collapse. I suspect, however, that Lukashenko, like any other poker player, will merely seek out partners in the West who are easier to bluff. Wilson ignores another factor, notable in the recent demonstrations in Moscow: a younger generation that demands more of life. Unlike North Korea, Belarus allows its youth mobile phones, a modicum of Internet access and travel, and even education abroad. There is a defiant underground culture in Minsk, such as satirical theatres that invite their audiences to last-moment venues by mobile phone. Time will take its toll of Lukashenko's cohort; their children are not like them. The beatings, torture, detentions and executions may go on for a decade, but Europe's last dictatorship cannot last much longer. Whether an independent Belarus will continue to serve its purpose as a buffer zone between Russian and the EU is another matter.