Lukashenko jokes with Putin over who is Europe's 'bigger dictator'

At a youth forum in Minsk on September 17, Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko made a casual remark that revealed something about the texture of his relationship with Vladimir Putin. He told the assembled young leaders that he and the Russian president regularly joke and argue over which of them deserves the title of Europe's ultimate dictator. The comment was light in tone but pointed—a kind of verbal sparring between two men who have consolidated power longer than almost anyone else on the continent.

Lukashenko, now 72, has ruled Belarus since 1994, making him Europe's longest-serving head of state. Putin has led Russia since 2012, though he also served as president from 2000 to 2008. When Lukashenko spoke to the youth forum, he acknowledged the label that has followed him for decades. "They say I'm the last dictator in Europe," he said, according to reporting from Novaya Gazeta. "Dictator—so be it. Well, Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin and I often argue, jokingly, about which of us is the bigger dictator."

The remarks underscore a partnership that has grown tighter as Russia's war in Ukraine has deepened. While Belarus has not committed ground troops to the conflict, it functions as something closer to a logistics hub for Moscow's military operations. Russia uses Belarusian territory to launch strikes into Ukraine, relies on Belarus for weapons components, and has been constructing new railway infrastructure capable of handling military trains near the Ukraine border in Gomel Oblast. The relationship between the two countries has become so intertwined that Western officials have intensified pressure on both Moscow and its allies.

Lukashenko's comments came just days after he met with Putin in Moscow on August 27, and he formally congratulated the Russian leader on his election results on September 21. In that message, Lukashenko praised what he called the "unprecedented turnout of millions of voters" and framed the outcome as a rebuke to what he termed "cynical attempts from the outside to discredit the campaign and sow discord." The language reflected the alignment between the two capitals, even as Western nations tightened their economic grip on both countries.

At the same youth forum where he joked with Putin about dictatorship, Lukashenko addressed the question of political succession in Belarus. He pushed back against the notion that he was clinging to power, saying he had grown tired of it. But he also made clear that he saw no one ready to take his place. "The only question is whether you are capable today of taking over the country and holding on to it," he told the audience. "If you are, start tomorrow. To be frank, I cannot yet answer that question positively."

The Western response to Belarus has remained unforgiving. Lithuania's Foreign Minister Kęstutis Budrys recently restated his country's position: "We do not see any reasons why our position on Belarus should soften as Belarus is not changing its behavior." The European Union maintains active sanctions over human rights abuses, though the United States lifted restrictions on Belarusian potash—a key fertilizer ingredient and major export—after Belarus released some political prisoners. Lukashenko announced on September 11 that Belarus had begun selling potash to the United States, a modest economic opening in an otherwise constrained landscape.

The joking between Lukashenko and Putin about who is the bigger dictator carries a particular weight in this context. It is the kind of remark that might seem trivial on its surface—two leaders bantering about their reputations—but it also signals a comfort with the labels the West has applied to them, even a kind of defiance in the face of international isolation. For Lukashenko, who has spent three decades in power and now finds himself more dependent on Moscow than ever, the joke is also a reminder of where his security lies.