Belarus Releases Political Prisoners in Apparent Thaw with U.S.

Sergei Tikhanovsky, a prominent opposition figure in Belarus, and over a dozen other political prisoners were released on Saturday. The announcement came from the team of Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, Tikhanovsky's wife, and was seen as a potential sign of improving relations between Washington and Belarus, a close ally of Moscow.

The release occurred shortly after a visit by retired Lt. Gen. Keith Kellogg, President Trump's special envoy for Ukraine and Russia, to Minsk. This visit marked a significant high-profile interaction between a U.S. official and the Belarusian government in recent years. Tsikhanouskaya expressed her gratitude to President Trump for his role in facilitating the deal.

According to Russian state media, Lukashenko, the Belarusian leader, ordered the prisoners' release at the "request" of President Trump. Trump himself appeared to take credit for the release on his social media platform.

The news was met with positive reactions from various European politicians and members of the Belarusian opposition in exile. They hailed the release as a symbol of hope and called for the immediate release of all remaining political prisoners.

Tikhanovsky, who had been imprisoned for over five years, had planned to run against Lukashenko in the 2020 presidential election but was arrested before the vote. He was later sentenced to lengthy prison terms on charges of "organizing riots" and "inciting hatred," among other offenses. His wife, who took over the opposition movement, ran in his place but lost in an election widely disputed as fraudulent.

Among the other individuals released was a journalist, Ihar Karnei, and a Swedish-Belarusian citizen, Galina Krasnyanskaya. The released prisoners were transferred to Lithuania, where they received care.

Belarus, under Lukashenko's rule since 1994, has outlawed genuine opposition parties and is the only European country to retain the death penalty. Despite the recent releases, the country still holds over 1,000 political prisoners.

The release of the prisoners is seen as part of a broader trend of improved relations between the United States and Belarus. Previous instances of prisoner releases, including a U.S. citizen in February and an American woman in January, have been interpreted as signs of Lukashenko's desire for stronger ties with the U.S.