As reported by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA), there are no Lithuanian citizens among them.
Earlier, BNS confirmed that the political prisoners being released will be brought to Lithuania, according to Dzianis Kučinskis, advisor to Belarusian opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya.
“Lithuanian institutions helped carry out border crossing procedures and ensure the safe transfer of the released political prisoners from the border to their place of stay. Some individuals did not have identification documents. Medical personnel are also on duty, ready to provide medical assistance if needed,” the MFA states.
Among the released prisoners are representatives of independent Belarusian media and other public figures – general director of the news portal Tut.by Liudmila Chekina, founder of “Art Siadziba” and the national symbols and souvenirs store “Symbal.by” Pavel Belavus, journalist and media manager Andrei Aliaksandrav, political scientist Taciana Kuzina, and director of the news agency “BelaPAN” Dzmitry Navazhylau.
BNS wrote that the release of prisoners was agreed upon during the visit of US President Donald Trump’s special envoy to Belarus, John Coale.
In turn, Washington will lift sanctions on the Belarusian paint manufacturer “Lakokraska” and the forestry concern “Bellesbumprom”.
Hundreds of people remain imprisoned in Belarus, an ally of Moscow, after the authoritarian president Alexander Lukashenko, in power since 1994, suppressed mass protests that erupted over his disputed re-election in 2020.
Washington has resumed dialogue with Minsk and eased some sanctions. After Trump’s return to the White House, dozens of political prisoners were released following John Coale’s visits.
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The independent human rights organization “Viasna,” monitoring arrests in Belarus, states that there are currently 912 political prisoners in the country.
Among them are both ordinary people who supported the protests, as well as journalists, trade union representatives, and individuals associated with the political opposition.
Human rights defenders and activists warn that although the regime releases some individuals, others are still arrested and imprisoned.
As BNS wrote, before going to Belarus, John Coale visited Lithuania this week, where he met with the country’s foreign minister Kęstutis Budrys.
John Coale last visited Minsk in March. At that time, Belarus released 250 political prisoners. After this visit, the special envoy urged Lithuania to restore the transit of Belarusian fertilizers and to hold a deputy minister-level meeting with Minsk.
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