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US lifts some sanctions on Belarus/ Lukashenko releases 123 political prisoners

2025-12-13 16:33:00, Kosova & Bota CNA

US lifts some sanctions on Belarus/ Lukashenko releases 123 political prisoners

Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko released 123 prisoners on Saturday, including Nobel Peace Prize laureate Ales Bialiatski, after two days of talks with a US envoy following the lifting of some US sanctions on the country. 

Bialiatski is a human rights activist who fought for years on behalf of political prisoners before becoming one himself. He had been in prison since July 2021.

Also among those released is Belarusian opposition politician Maria Kalesnikava, a leader of mass protests against Lukashenko in 2020, and Viktar Babaryka, who was arrested that year while preparing to run against the president in the election.

The group released on Saturday includes a Polish citizen, Raman Haluza, a Belarusian-born activist who lived in Poland for nine years and was involved in helping Belarusian refugees in the country. He was arrested in July 2022 shortly after arriving in Belarus and later convicted on charges of high treason.

The prisoner release is arguably the largest by Lukashenko since the Trump administration opened talks this year with the veteran authoritarian leader, a close ally of Russian President Vladimir Putin.

US officials have told US media that the engagement with Lukashenko is part of an effort to distance him from Putin's influence, at least to some extent, an effort that the Belarusian opposition has, so far, viewed with extreme skepticism.

The US Embassy in Vilnius said diplomatic efforts continue to release the remaining political prisoners held in Belarus./ CNA





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