Report on Focus Groups: Fragmentation and Resilience in the Belarusian Diaspora

Photograph: Unsplash, Jana Shnipelson

The report presents the findings of focus group discussions conducted in 2025 with representatives of the Belarusian diaspora in Lithuania and Poland as part of the project “Portrait of Exiled Belarusians and the Role of Belarus in Russia’s War on Ukraine,” implemented in cooperation with the European Council on Foreign Relations.

Based on qualitative discussions with activists, professionals, cultural workers, veterans, and members of grassroots initiatives, the report explores how Belarusians in exile experience political displacement, civic engagement, solidarity, and everyday life under conditions of authoritarian repression, forced migration, and geopolitical instability.

The findings reveal a complex and often paradoxical picture of the Belarusian diaspora. While grassroots initiatives, mutual aid networks, and community organizations continue to sustain democratic values and create infrastructures of solidarity, the diaspora is also shaped by fragmentation, emotional exhaustion, distrust toward political structures in exile, and experiences of marginalization in host societies.

Particular attention is devoted to:

• the transformation of Belarusian civic activism after 2020;

• the impact of Russia’s war against Ukraine on Belarusian communities abroad;

• tensions between grassroots actors and formal opposition structures;

• questions of identity, legitimacy, and political representation in exile;

• and the everyday challenges of integration, legal insecurity, and long-term uncertainty.

By foregrounding the lived experiences of Belarusian exiles in Lithuania and Poland, the report contributes to ongoing discussions on transnational activism, diaspora politics, democratic resilience, and post-authoritarian civil society in Eastern Europe.

Final report.pdf

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