Belarus freed 25 political prisoners following discussions between US envoy John Coale and President Alexander Lukashenko, according to an announcement made on Wednesday. The releases included human rights campaigners, political activists, journalists, and lawyers. In conjunction with the prisoner release, the United States lifted sanctions on two Belarusian entities: Lakokraska, a paint and industrial coating manufacturer, and Bellesbumprom, a state-owned industrial enterprise overseeing the forestry, pulp and paper sectors. Additionally, the US committed to returning tens of millions of dollars in frozen Belarusian assets to US banks.
Coale indicated that the agreement represented progress in broader negotiations that began more than a year earlier. Speaking in Vilnius, Lithuania, where the released prisoners were transported, the envoy stated he anticipated returning approximately one month later with hopes of securing the release of hundreds more individuals. Coale attributed the success to President Donald Trump’s approach to direct diplomacy, stating the administration would continue efforts to improve US-Belarus relations. Trump had assigned Coale the responsibility of securing the release of hundreds of detained individuals.
Among those freed was journalist Andrei Alyaksandrau, who had been serving a 14-year sentence for allegedly financing protest activities. According to the Belarusian human rights organization Viasna, many of the released prisoners had served multiple years in detention. Three additional journalists—Dzmitry Navazhylau, Kiryl Pazniak, and Liudmila Chekina—were released and subsequently deported to Lithuania. The European Union welcomed the releases while noting that over 800 individuals remain arbitrarily detained in Belarus.
Exiled opposition leader Svetlana Tsikhanouskaya acknowledged the effort required for each release while emphasizing that hundreds of political prisoners remain incarcerated. Her husband, Siarhei Tsikhanouski, had been freed the previous year after five years in detention. Lukashenko has governed Belarus since 1994 and has faced international criticism for suppressing opposition and supporting Russia’s military actions in Ukraine.
Article Attribution | Read More at Article Source
Article summary produced by Claude AI