Belarus frees opposition politician Maria Kalesnikava

VILNIUS, Lithuania,— Belarus released more than 120 political prisoners, including Nobel Peace Prize laureate Ales Bialiatski and opposition leader Maria Kalesnikava (Kolesnikova), following talks with U.S. officials aimed at easing sanctions and restoring dialogue between Minsk and Washington.

President Alexander Lukashenko pardoned 123 prisoners, according to the state-run Belta news agency. The United States announced it would lift sanctions targeting Belarus’s potash industry.

Belarus is a close ally of Russia and has faced Western sanctions over human rights abuses and its support for Russia’s military operations in Ukraine. Lukashenko has ruled the country of 9.5 million people for more than three decades.

John Coale, U.S. special envoy to Belarus, described the talks in Minsk as “very productive” and said restoring normal relations between the two countries was a goal.

“We are lifting sanctions, releasing prisoners. We maintain constant dialogue,” Coale said, according to Belta.

The prisoner release included one American, six citizens from allied countries, and five Ukrainians, a U.S. official told The Associated Press in an email. The official spoke anonymously due to the sensitive nature of the negotiations.

Since July 2024, Belarus has freed hundreds of political prisoners. Bialiatski, founder of the human rights organization Viasna, was among the most prominent figures.

He received the Nobel Peace Prize in 2022 while in prison and had been sentenced to ten years in 2023 on charges including smuggling and financing actions that violated public order.

Bialiatski told the AP by phone Saturday that his release was unexpected. “It feels like I jumped out of icy water into a warm room, and now I must adjust,” he said. Videos and photos after his release showed him looking pale.

Kalesnikava, a key figure in the 2020 mass protests in Belarus, is closely associated with exiled opposition leader Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya.

Known for her close-cropped hair and her signature gesture of forming a heart with her hands, Kalesnikava became widely recognized during the protests.

In September 2020, authorities tried to deport her to Ukraine, but she broke away from security forces at the border, tore up her passport, and returned to Belarus.

She was convicted in 2021 on charges including conspiracy to seize power and sentenced to 11 years in prison. Kalesnikava is a professional flutist and has been a prominent symbol of resistance against Belarusian authorities.

Other notable individuals released included Viktar Babaryka, who ran against Lukashenko in the 2020 election, and opposition activists Maxim Znak, Valiantsin Stefanovic, and Uladzimir Labkovich. Bialiatski later clarified that Stefanovic had not yet been released.

Most of the prisoners were sent to Ukraine, Franak Viachorka, Tsikhanouskaya’s senior adviser, told the AP.

Eight or nine, including Bialiatski, went to Lithuania, with additional transfers planned in the following days.

Ukrainian authorities confirmed that 114 civilians, including five Ukrainians, were handed over, and that Belarusian nationals would later be transported to Poland and Lithuania after receiving medical treatment.

Lukashenko’s press secretary, Natalya Eismont, said the transfers were part of a deal in which Ukraine would release Belarusian and Russian nationals, though the Ukrainian government has not confirmed this.

John Coale told reporters that the discussions also covered Venezuela and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

He said Lukashenko offered advice on addressing the conflict and noted his long-standing relationship with Russian President Vladimir Putin.

The U.S. official added that improving relations also requires resolving tensions between Belarus and Lithuania, a NATO and EU member.

Lithuanian President Gitanas Nauseda welcomed the prisoner releases on social media, praising the detainees’ courage and stating that Lithuania supports human rights.

Lithuania declared a national emergency this week after security threats from Belarusian meteorological balloons disrupted air travel, closing the country’s main airport multiple times and stranding thousands of travelers.

(With files from AP)