Belarus freed 52 political prisoners on Thursday as part of a deal brokered by the US, which lifted some sanctions on the country’s national airline.
It was another sign of a possible rapprochement between Washington and Minsk, a close ally of Russia that has faced Western isolation for years. US President Donald Trump and Belarus President Alexander Lukashenko spoke on the phone last month, and the US leader even suggested a face-to-face meeting could be in the works.
That would be a big win for Lukashenko, who has ruled his nation of 9.5 million with an iron fist for more than three decades. Belarus has been repeatedly sanctioned by Western countries for its crackdown on human rights and for allowing Moscow to use its territory in the invasion of Ukraine in 2022.
Photo: Reuters
However, more recently, Lukashenko has sought to mend ties with the West in the hopes of easing the sanctions. He has regularly released prisoners as a way to win favor, including freeing Siarhei Tsikhanouski, a key dissident and the husband of exiled opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, in June.
The concession from the US came a day after Poland denounced an incursion of Russian drones into its territory — saying some came from Belarus — in what Western officials called an act of aggression. NATO jets were scrambled and shot some of the drones down.
Trump, whose country is the major military power in NATO, offered an ambiguous initial response to the incursion, writing on Truth Social: “What’s with Russia violating Poland’s airspace with drones? Here we go!”
Photo: EPA
SANCTIONS EASING
Trump envoy John Coale announced the lifting of sanctions at a meeting with Lukashenko in Minsk on Thursday.
Some sanctions on Belarus national carrier, Belavia, were relaxed in light of prisoner releases so far, said a US official, who spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss private diplomatic conversations. That would allow the airline to repair and buy parts for its planes, including Boeing aircraft.
The airline was sanctioned by the EU, the US and others after Belarusian flight controllers ordered a commercial jet traveling from Greece to Lithuania to land in Minsk. Once the plane landed, authorities arrested Raman Pratasevich, a dissident journalist who was on board.
Lukashenko, who has relied on Russia’s loans and cheap energy to keep Belarus’ economy afloat, called the Thursday move “very important.”
Opposition leader Tsikhanouskaya said that the easing of sanctions could allow Moscow, whose aviation industry is sanctioned, to get airplane parts through Belavia.
“We understand that this is part of the deal, but lifting sanctions without systemic changes in the country could open loopholes that both the Lukashenko regime and Russia will use to circumvent the sanctions,” she said.
That could also create new opportunities for Belarus in its relationship with Russia. Minsk would be able to resell the parts to Moscow “at a very favorable price,” independent analyst Valery Karbalevich said, adding that it makes “the Kremlin’s leash” on Belarus “a little longer.”
ACTIVIST
One of the prisoners released on Thursday, veteran opposition activist Mikalai Statkevich, refused to cross into Lithuania and tried to return to Belarus, but was blocked by the border guards, said Anatol Lyabedzka, a member of Tsikhanouskaya’s team.
Maksim Viniarski, another freed dissident, said that Statkevich repeatedly demanded to stop the bus taking him, Viniarski and others to Lithuania and let him out. As the bus entered the no-man’s land between Belarus and Lithuania, “emaciated, yet determined to resist,” Statkevich hit an emergency stop button, opened the door and got out.
For a while, Statkevich remained in the no-man’s land, but then Belarusian security operatives took him in the direction of the Belarusian border crossing, Lyabedzka said.
The other 51 freed prisoners have crossed into Lithuania, Lyabedzka said.
Statkevich, one of Lukashenko’s most prominent and charismatic opponents, attempted to run for president in 2010, but was arrested, convicted on charges of organizing mass riots and sentenced to six years. He was released in 2015 under pressure from the US
Statkevich was arrested again before the 2020 elections, found guilty once more of organizing mass riots, and sentenced to another 14 years. He has been held incommunicado since February 2023.
Also among those released were Ihar Losik, a journalist for US government-funded broadcaster Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, as well as other journalists and bloggers, party and union leaders, and 14 foreigners.
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