As the war in Ukraine rages on, Western leaders are struggling to find ways to weaken Russia without risking escalation or harming themselves economically. But a labor-market policy toward Belarus offers one solution: Issue hassle-free tech-worker visas.
Poland’s tech sector has been thriving so much that it’s in dire need of workers. Many Poles with tech experience are being snapped up by companies in Europe and even in the U.S. The Polish government’s website offers an extraordinarily friendly welcome: “Are you an engineer or do you have experience in the IT sector? Are you considering relocating to Poland? We will help you fast-track the immigration procedure, allowing you to enter Poland together with your family.” The welcome is part of a Polish-government launch last year that saw the country inviting Belarusian tech experts to meet its demand for tech workers. When the visa was launched, Poland had a shortage of about 50,000 tech workers, with the number expected to double within the next 10 years if nothing is done.
At the same time, Poland’s eastern neighbor, Belarus, has grown belligerent. After crushing protests against his re-election in 2020, longtime ruler
Alexander Lukashenko
has become more aggressive toward Poland and other EU member states. His aggression reached new heights in May 2021, when Belarus diverted a Lithuania-bound
flight to arrest a Belarusian dissident on board. He then launched an artificial migration wave aimed at Poland, Lithuania, Latvia and the rest of the EU.
But Belarus is also increasingly reliant on its tech sector for economic growth. Under Mr. Lukashenko’s authoritarian rule, Belarus has become isolated from international trade and investment. Eighty percent of the country’s industry is state-owned and many large, Belarusian companies are under international sanctions. One of the country’s few economic lights…