(NEW YORK) — The Belarusian government announced Saturday that it has released 123 people, including foreigners, a Nobel Prize winner and several political opposition leaders, who were being held in prison on “espionage, terrorism, and extremism” charges.
Belarusian government officials said in a statement that the release is part of “agreements reached with U.S. President Donald Trump” and involves the United States lifting sanctions on the Belarusian potash industry.
U.S. Special Envoy for Belarus John Coale told reporters in Minsk Saturday that the U.S. was lifting sanctions against Belarusian potash producer Belaruskali, one of the European country’s largest state-owned companies.
Coale said the goal is to normalize relations between the U.S. and Belarus and that “more sanctions will be lifted” in the future.
Among the prisoners released were two prominent Belarusian activists, Nobel Prize winner Ales Bialiatski and opposition figure Maria Kalesnikava.
Of the detainees, 114 were transferred to Ukraine while the remaining nine, including Bialiatski, were transferred to Lithuania, according to the Ukrainian government.
Shortly after her release, Kalesnikava was seen arriving at the Ukrainian border and reuniting with Viktar Babaryka and Maxim Znak, both of whom were former Belarusian prisoners.
Babaryka was imprisoned during the 2020 election while trying to run against Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko. Kalesnikava was his campaign manager and took his place after he was arrested.
Bialiatski spoke with the press from Lithuania telling them, “being released means meeting with family, meeting with friends and continuing my work as a human rights defender.”
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