On the sidelines of the OSCE Ministerial Meeting, a side event titled “Preparing a Democratic Future for Belarus” took place. The event was organized by the member countries of the “For a Democratic Belarus” Alliance.
Alongside Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya, participants included the Political Secretary of State of Finland, Pasi Rajala; the Head of the International Accountability Platform for Belarus (IAPB), Andrea Huber; the Vice-Minister of Foreign Affairs of Lithuania, Audra Plepytė; and the Undersecretary for Global Affairs of the MFA of Estonia, Minna-Liina Lind.
In her speech, Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya presented practical proposals, calling on the international community to:
- consider invoking the Moscow Mechanism, with particular attention to the persecution of Belarusians in exile;
- support Lithuania and Poland in responding to hybrid attacks from the Lukashenka regime;
- monitor conditions in Belarusian prisons, including inhumane treatment, torture, and enforced disappearances;
- hold a new high-level conference on the future of Belarus, similar to the 2021 Vienna conference, to prevent Belarus from being used as a geopolitical tool by Russia;
- contribute to the International Humanitarian Fund that supports victims of repression and support independent media, human rights initiatives, and the democratic forces of Belarus.
Read the full speech below.
Dear Excellencies, friends
Dear Mr. Pasi Rajala,
Thank you for your kind and powerful words, for your stance in support of Ukraine and Free Belarus. The fates of our countries are intertwined.
Please pass my gratitude to Finland and Minister Valtonen, for inviting me to this ministerial meeting. It’s crucial that the voice of Belarusian people is represented in OSCE, not only the illegitimate regime.
I want to remind you that we won the elections back in 2020, according to all independent counts. After that, Lukashenka violently seized power, and has no right to speak on behalf of Belarus. He serves Putin, not the Belarusian people.
I want to personally thank Kaja Kallas, Norway, Luxembourg, Lithuania – and all who spoke today about Belarus at the plenary.
Without free and democratic Belarus, there will not be peace and stability in Europe.
Same as without European independent Belarus – the European project will never be complete.
I want to thank all the members of the Group of Friends of Democratic Belarus in the OSCE. Now it’s 30 countries, and our coalition is growing.
I am glad to share this stage with Audra Plepyte, from Lithuania — a country which, alongside Poland, became a safe haven for thousands of Belarusians fleeing terror, which has not stopped for a single day since 2020.
As a revenge, Lukashenka’s regime conducts a hybrid attack on Lithuania, as we speak. And OSCE, as an organization, must stand firm with Lithuania to stop such hostile action from another member-state.
Glad to see Minna-Liina Lind, we met in Tallinn just recently. With Estonia, we work together in the United Nations and international courts, on bringing the Belarus case.
I am also glad to see Andrea Huber. The International Accountability Platform for Belarus, created by OSCE Moscow Mechanism recommendation, has already collected millions of pieces of evidence of the regime’s crimes.
All these testimonies will help us to launch cases in ICJ, ICC, and will be instrumental in the Special Tribunal for the Crime of Aggression, launched by the Council of Europe.
Because the terror conducted by the regime today against Belarusians is inseparable from the war. It serves the same Russian imperial interests.
Let me also thank all the countries who joined our International Humanitarian Fund for victims of repression, a truly unprecedented project.
Launched by Norway and Sweden, joined by Finland, Estonia, Latvia, Denmark, Croatia, Ireland, Iceland, Spain, Luxembourg — it provides direct humanitarian aid to victims of repression in Belarus, former political prisoners, including those who suffered for their pro-Ukrainian stance.
At least 80 thousand passed through repression, 3500 people already served unjust sentences up to five years, and at least 1200 political prisoners remain behind bars.
The work of the Fund would be particularly crucial right now, when the American administration conducts humanitarian talks with the Minsk regime on releasing more people.
We as the United Transitional Cabinet remain in regular contact with the White House and State Department.
I appreciate that the very first call the newly appointed President Trump’s envoy on Belarus John Coale made was to me. And we deeply value President Trump’s personal engagement in the Belarus case.
We see the American track as a humanitarian one, aimed to save people’s lives. And already more than 100 people have been released, including my husband who spent 5 years in solitary confinement.
All these releases are the result of our coordinated JOINT efforts: brilliant American diplomacy on one hand, and European pressure – on the other.
Our common task now is to release ALL, and of course, to stop the vicious circle of repression in Belarus.
But let’s not be naive. Lukashenka doesn’t release people because he suddenly became humane.
On one hand, he releases some people; on the other, he detains twice as many.
On one hand, he claims he wants better relations with the West; at the same time, he takes trucks hostage and paralyzes the Vilnius airport with air balloons, like yesterday.
On one hand, he talks about peace talks in Minsk; on the other, he is building an ammunition factory that will produce half a million shells for the Russian army to kill Ukrainians.
We cannot trust him. We cannot justify him. And we must not allow him to escape accountability. And we must not legitimize him or normalize what is happening in Belarus today.
Yes, softening sanctions can be a carrot for Lukashenka. But they can also be a stick.
And Lukashenka must know that if he escalates – there will be consequences, and we support the new sanction package EU is preparing.
Unfortunately, this is how it works with such regimes, and we must be ready to respond accordingly.
With such regime, “normalization” can happen only when all political prisoners are released, repression stops, people safely return home, provocations end, perpetrators are brought to account… But until this happens, the pressure, must continue.
The release of people is our priority today, along with ending repression. But it’s just the first step. Our goal is democratic transition.
Because while Lukashenka is in power, while Belarus is under Russian control – it will always be a threat. Like Russia’s balcony over Ukraine and Europe — and a pathway for new escalation.
Dear friends,
Belarus is a perfect example of how democracy and security are inseparable.
A government that does not respect its own citizens will not respect its neighbours.
Today, with uncertainty around Ukraine and the ongoing talk of peace negotiations, Lukashenka’s regime feels fragile.
Its economy is stagnating and survives only thanks to Russian war contracts.
Any ceasefire or agreement on Ukraine can create new dynamics in Belarus.
When Ukraine is strong, Russia is weakened, it could open a window of opportunity for our country.
Because the people of Belarus want change. We strongly support Ukraine, and an overwhelming majority is against the war.
Any shift in the status quo will bring international attention back to Belarus — and the regime knows it.
When this moment comes, we must be ready to use it: to put Belarus on a democratic track and, crucially, to pull Belarus out of Russian control.
For many Belarusians, including within the nomenklatura, Lukashenka is a lame duck. His clock is ticking. That is why we must prepare for a post-Lukashenka Belarus now.
This is where I hope for strong OSCE involvement. We rely on OSCE as an organization and on OSCE member states, to be ready for change, and guide us to new elections, free and fair.
As Belarusian democratic forces, we are preparing for a new momentum. For example, next Monday in Brussels, together with High Representative Kaja Kallas and Commissioner Marta Kos, we will present a package of reforms and a draft Constitution — to ensure democratic transition and bring Belarus closer to Europe.
I call on you to pay attention to Belarus, because next year can be decisive, not only for Ukraine but for Belarus too.
Dear friends,
Today I brought several concrete proposals to our Group of Friends and to the OSCE as an organization.
First, I call on you to consider invoking the Moscow Mechanism under Paragraph 8, focusing specifically on the forced displacement of Belarusians and their extraterritorial persecution. We have already shared a concept note prepared by the National Anti-Crisis Management and Belarusian human rights defenders.
Second, I ask you to support Lithuania and Poland, who are facing ongoing hybrid attacks from Lukashenka’s regime. It is clear that the regime is testing the limits — how far it can go without consequences. Here, we must show solidarity and strength.
Third, I urge ODIHR to monitor the situation in Belarusian prisons, including inhumane conditions, torture, and cases of enforced disappearances. Many political prisoners have simply vanished behind bars — like Mikalai Statkevich, who refused to be deported. We do not know where he is today.
Fourth, let’s hold a new High-level conference on Belarus’s future, similar to the one held in Vienna in 2021 — to discuss Belarus’s sovereignty and its place in Europe’s security architecture. For us, it is essential that Belarus does not become a consolation prize for Putin.
Fifth, I call on all your countries to join the International Humanitarian Fund for victims of repression. The scale of repression is enormous, and support for the persecuted far exceeds our current resources. I ask you also to support our independent media, human rights initiatives, and democratic institutions.
Dear friends,
I know that the change in Belarus is the task of Belarusians themselves.
But no struggle for freedom has ever been won without allies.
Many of these allies are in this room. And I will always be grateful for your solidarity and support.
See your support for Belarus as an investment in your own security. Free Belarus will be a donor of peace and stability for Europe, not its constant threat.
Behind the regime’s crimes, we often forget the best part of Belarus — its people. Belarusians are responsible, creative, and ready for change.
And dictatorships always look invincible… until they suddenly collapse. We saw it with the Berlin Wall, with the Soviet Union, and recently in Syria.
And the most important message I want to leave you with: keep supporting Ukraine, give it everything it needs.
Because today, Ukraine is fighting for all of us.
Thank you, and Žyvie Belarus!
