A meeting of the International Alliance of Parliamentary Groups “For a Democratic Belarus” is taking place at the Palace of Westminster in London. The event has brought together MPs from the United Kingdom, Ukraine, Spain, Lithuania, Latvia, Croatia, the Czech Republic, Georgia, and Luxembourg, as well as members of the European Parliament, the Parliamentary Assembly of the Council of Europe, the democratic forces of Belarus, and the broader Belarusian community.
Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya delivered opening remarks, thanking MPs from the UK for consistently supporting Belarus and noting that Belarus remains an important part of the European agenda. She stressed that the security of Belarus, Ukraine, and Europe is inseparably linked, and that supporting democratic change in Belarus is an investment in the region’s overall security and stability.
Sviatlana Tsikhanouskaya called for maintaining international pressure on the Lukashenka and Putin regimes, pursuing accountability for crimes committed against Belarusians and Ukrainians, and preparing for future democratic change in Belarus. She stressed the need to discuss a positive vision for the country — what Belarus could become after the end of dictatorship, how democratic reforms can be implemented, the rule of law restored, and the country returned to the European family of nations.
“People living under dictatorship want to hear about the future we are fighting for, not just the repression and war they endure today. What will life look like after dictatorship? How can we free ourselves from dependence on Russia? How do we carry out constitutional reform and economic modernization and restore democratic institutions and the rule of law? All of this is part of the only path toward returning Belarus to its place in Europe.
Let me remind you that all dictatorships seem invincible until they suddenly collapse. We cannot know when or how it will happen. What we can do is bring that moment closer. And that is why we are here”.
