Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya is in Brussels. On December 8, she met with the EU Commissioner for Enlargement, Marta Kos, who informed Ms. Tsikhanouskaya about a €30 million aid package to be allocated to Belarusian programs in 2026.
Ms. Tsikhanouskaya thanked Commissioner Kos and the European Union for their consistent and principled support for repressed individuals and independent journalists.
Please note that the democratic forces are not involved in distributing this aid. The funds are allocated through European support programs and competitions for Belarusian and international NGOs working on Belarus. The aid will be directed primarily to support repressed people, independent journalism, and civil society.
Foreign assistance to Belarus typically covers the following areas:
- support for independent media and journalists (including investigations, content creation, and blogger initiatives)!
- think tanks and expert research;
- human rights activities and monitoring of repression (documentation of crimes, accountability initiatives);
- assistance to repressed individuals and their families (legal support, relocation, rehabilitation);
- civil society initiatives both inside the country and in exile;
- educational programs (scholarships, research, exchanges, training, youth programs, leadership programs);
- cultural projects;
- digital security;
- support for the Belarusian diaspora and small businesses in exile;
- support for democratic institutions, among others.
